Fraudsters swindle same bank twice

Two Pakistanis along with other accomplices allegedly conned a bank of about half a million dirhams and the attempted to swindle the same bank of another half a million using forged documents, the Dubai Criminal Court heard.
 
The bank discovered the second fraud attempt and investigations led bank officers to believe that the two accused had conned the bank of half a million with the help of a fugitive AH who had swindled a number of banks in the same way.
 
The bank’s Manager of Frauds and Investigations told investigators that on July 10, 2014, a man, who claimed to be an Indian, submitted documents with the name of ZR through the bank’s branch in Bur Dubai.
 
The so-called ZR applied for Dh480,000 personal loan in addition to two credit cards of Dh6,000 value for the first and Dh10,000 for the second, said the manager.
 
ZR submitted all needed documents including the original and photocopy of his passport, UAE ID card, a statement issued by a company based in Ajman, and a bank statement.
 
The client opened an account with the bank and applied for the loan in addition to two credit cards.
 
The credit department approved the applications and the loan was deposited in his account with the bank. The client withdrew the loan in the same day.
 
The bank’s Fraud Fighting and Investigation Department checks some applications randomly. One of the checked applications was of the client ZR.
 
“We found out that ZR had submitted forged documents. The bank statement he had used for obtaining a loan was proved to be forged. We also checked with the Ajman-based company, we found out that ZR does not work for them. Dubai Police Criminal Investigation Department reported that the used passport and ID cards were not in its data base,” said the manager.
 
The situation prompted the bank to check all transactions and applications.
 
“We found out that another Indian client, BM, was applying for Dh490,000 personal loan and three credit cards of Dh15,000 total value. This client also submitted a statement from the same Ajman-based company. Checking on documents we found out that they were all forged. The application, which was in the process of endorsement, was seized,” he said.
 
In coordination with the police, the client was asked to approach the bank to sign on some documents. The client refused and asked the bank to send him an employee with the documents to the street opposite to the bank. Police arrested the client red handed while signing on the documents.
 
A senior customer service employee told investigators that ZR had approached the bank and transferred his salary after opening an account. He had submitted three months’ statements from his previous bank. The statements were stamped by his previous bank.
 
After that, he applied for Dh480,000 loan. After it was deposited in his account, he withdrew it from the teller.
 
“Three weeks later, he called me and asked me to assist his Indian colleague BM in opening an account and applying for a loan. I called BM who sought Dh490,000 loan. BM submitted documents similar to that of ZR including salary transfer, bank statements and company letter. The documents were referred to the endorsement department for approval,” the customer service employee told investigators.
 
Outside the bank, police arrested the ‘client’ IA, 22, clerk, and his accomplice ‘first client’ GA, 37, visitor, who was waiting for him in a car.
 
The bank’s customer service employee recognised the two accused when shown to him via identification parades.
 
GA told the police that AH - who was later arrested for conning a number of banks with the help of CZ, an employee in the same bank- had supplied him with the needed documents.
 
The crime planners, AH, 44, and the bank employee CZ, 33, had been sentenced in two fraud cases and are being prosecuted in a third one for which the court will reconvene on October 19.
 
IA, one of the two accused in this case, admitted that AH, the mastermind of the frauds, had issued him a visa to the country to forge documents against Dh5,000.
 
The court will reconvene on October 27.

 

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