CHENNAI: Harassment by agents of app-based loan companies went a notch higher than usual when an agent made a hoax call to a police control room saying a defaulter was making bombs at his house in Mangadu, a suburb of Chennai, on Thursday.
Claiming to be calling from Japan, the hoax caller mentioned an address in Muthamizh Nagar in Mangadu and said the occupant, Kabeer Mohammed, 45, was making bombs at the house. He disconnected the call before police could ask any questions.
Not willing to leave anything to chance, a police team, along with sniffer dogs, rushed to the address in Mangadu, only to realise it was a hoax call.
Kabeer Mohammed was a daily wager and vacated the house three years ago. He is now staying in Puzhal, another suburb of Chennai. Kabeer told police that he had taken Rs 5 lakh as loan through an app in instalments. While procuring the loan, he had given the house in Mangadu as his address proof.
“He had met with a road accident and used the quick loan app to meet his medical expenses. He took money in instalments and was unable to repay,” a police officer said. As Kabeer failed to pay up, recovery agents from the company started bombarding him with calls. They also called up people in his contact list and abused Kabeer, branding him as a defaulter. As their usual methods did not yield results, the agents allegedly resorted to the hoax call. The FIR does not mention the company’s name, but says the concerned loan app firm is the suspect.
Police are yet to trace the caller. Mangadu inspector D Raji said, “He has made an internet call to Kabeer. Efforts are on to track him with the help of the IP address”.
Claiming to be calling from Japan, the hoax caller mentioned an address in Muthamizh Nagar in Mangadu and said the occupant, Kabeer Mohammed, 45, was making bombs at the house. He disconnected the call before police could ask any questions.
Not willing to leave anything to chance, a police team, along with sniffer dogs, rushed to the address in Mangadu, only to realise it was a hoax call.
Kabeer Mohammed was a daily wager and vacated the house three years ago. He is now staying in Puzhal, another suburb of Chennai. Kabeer told police that he had taken Rs 5 lakh as loan through an app in instalments. While procuring the loan, he had given the house in Mangadu as his address proof.
“He had met with a road accident and used the quick loan app to meet his medical expenses. He took money in instalments and was unable to repay,” a police officer said. As Kabeer failed to pay up, recovery agents from the company started bombarding him with calls. They also called up people in his contact list and abused Kabeer, branding him as a defaulter. As their usual methods did not yield results, the agents allegedly resorted to the hoax call. The FIR does not mention the company’s name, but says the concerned loan app firm is the suspect.
Police are yet to trace the caller. Mangadu inspector D Raji said, “He has made an internet call to Kabeer. Efforts are on to track him with the help of the IP address”.
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