The Ormanjhi police have busted an alleged vehicle fraud syndicate that operated under the cover of a fake travel agency in Ranchi, renting four-wheelers from unsuspecting car owners before pledging them to third parties as collateral for large cash sums. Three persons have been arrested and remanded to judicial custody following the police action. Investigators identified the arrested accused as Vishwajeet Kumar Singh alias Vicky, aged 35, Manoj Kumar, aged 36, and Jyoti Kumari alias Baby, aged 34. According to law enforcement officials, the group systematically targeted vehicle owners by offering lucrative rental terms, initially paying agreed sums on schedule for two to three months to build credibility before secretly transferring possession of the cars to external lenders in exchange for heavy financial payments.
Shubh Yatra Travels Run from Commercial Mall on Ratu Road
The gang conducted its fraudulent operations through an entity named Shubh Yatra Travels, which was functioning out of an office inside the Mall of Ranchi located on Ratu Road. Using the enterprise as legitimate commercial cover, the suspects approached private vehicle owners and convinced them to place their cars into the fleet with promises of consistent, high-yield monthly returns. After establishing reliable payment histories over the initial two to three months, the suspects severed genuine operations and pledged the entrusted vehicles to unrelated third parties as security against substantial cash borrowings. This calculated practice left the original owners deprived of their assets while saddling them with severe financial losses. The racket came to light after an FIR was registered by Sunny Kumar, a resident of Harchanda, prompting the Ormanjhi police to track down the network and initiate enforcement measures.
Four Vehicles and Mobile Devices Recovered During Police Operations
Following the registration of the complaint and subsequent operational raids, the police recovered four cars allegedly linked to the fraudulent operations. The seized vehicles include a premium Toyota Fortuner, a Hyundai i10, a Maruti Suzuki Fronx, and a Maruti Baleno that was found without a registration number plate. Investigating officers also confiscated six mobile phones belonging to the suspects, which are currently being analyzed to identify caller logs, contacts, and transaction histories tied to the unauthorized transactions. Authorities are examining the original ownership records of each recovered vehicle and the terms under which the gang gained physical control. Law enforcement agencies are actively assessing how many car owners were defrauded across the district and establishing the precise number of vehicles pledged to third-party lenders.
Criminal Histories Surface as Additional Victims Lodge Complaints
Police verification revealed that two of the arrested accused, Vishwajeet Kumar Singh and Manoj Kumar, carry prior criminal records and have served prison sentences in earlier cases. Singh faces multiple registered cases across police stations in Munger, Namkum, Kanke, and Ormanjhi. Kumar has a previous criminal case registered against him under the Excise Act at the Meenapur police station in Muzaffarpur district of Bihar. The scope of the inquiry widened further after two more individuals approached the authorities with formal complaints against the arrested syndicate. Santosh Kumar, a resident of Ramgarh, along with Mrinalkranti Majumdar, submitted complaints at the Ratu police station seeking legal action and the recovery of their vehicles. Ormanjhi police are expanding their investigation to trace additional associates who helped run the agency, locate remaining pledged vehicles, and determine the complete financial volume generated by the scam.
