Kolkata, Sep 4 : Kolkata Police have started alerting people about a new kind of fraud where individuals are getting linked to fraud cases by sharing their bank account details with fraudsters.

This new kind of fraud is seen as bank account rental fraud through which a huge amount of money is going to the accounts of fraudsters, said a senior officer of Kolkata Police on Thursday.

According to the police, people of different ages, especially housewives, are falling victim to this fraud.

Recently, a woman from Tollygunge in south Kolkata was arrested by the Kolkata Police for being involved in such a fraud case. The woman's name is Rita Vaidya Sengupta.

It is alleged that a loan of five lakh rupees was taken from a lending company by submitting fake documents in her name. However, the woman did not know anything about this and had no idea that such an amount was taken from a lending company in her name.

But as she could not deposit the money on time, a case was registered against Rita Vaidya with the Kolkata Police. Based on that complaint, special officers of the Kolkata Police's Detective Branch arrested her.

Meanwhile, a young man from the Banshdroni area in south Kolkata also became a victim of this crime, namely Imran Ansari. Similarly, fraudsters took a huge loan by using his bank account details, and the complaint was filed in Chandigarh.

Based on that complaint, Chandigarh Police, along with Kolkata Police, raided Imran's house and arrested him.

Although Imran, who was caught, apparently knows nothing about this. In both incidents, the police could not catch the main culprit.

"There is a mastermind behind all of this. A search is underway to find that mastermind. Fraudsters are luring people from different classes to get loans easily," said a senior officer of Kolkata Police.

"Once they fall into the trap and share their bank details, the fraudsters use such details to get loans from lending companies. They are also making fake documents, such as payslips, in the name of the individual to clear their track. Once the loan is approved, it is being deposited in the fraudster's account while the loan is going on in the name of that individual who had shared the bank details," said the police.

While all this is going on, the individual in question has no clue about it. As fraudsters are not repaying the loan amount, the individual is seen as the defaulter.

Following such developments, officers of the Detective Branch of Kolkata have advised people to be careful. The police officers have also warned people not to share their bank account details with anyone.

/IANS