Loan app fraud: 12th pass Bihar man was second in command for Chinese kingpin

Nepal cops at the Butwal call centre on July 25

With a monthly salary of two lakh Nepalese rupees, a 12th-pass Bihar man was the highest-paid employee in the three illegal call centres busted in Nepal, sources in the country's Cyber Bureau have told mid-day. He was the second-in-command to the Chinese nationals who ran the call centres and was instrumental in setting up the facilities - at Tinkune and Thamel in Kathmandu and one in Butwal - that targeted Indian borrowers of digital lending apps.

Niranjan Kumar

Niranjan Kumar, 25, from Bodhgaya was arrested from the Butwal call centre in Rupandehi district on July 25. Nepal police sources said he has been in their country for the past 18 months. Apart from setting up the call centre, he would supervise the operations and recruit Hindi-speaking candidates. Two trainees working with him escaped during the raid in Rupandehi, they said.

Also read: Loan app scam: Inside Nepal call centre used to harass Indian borrowers

Officers said Kumar directly coordinated with the Chinese nationals. "We were surprised to see his salary slip as he is just Std XII pass. He was paid a monthly salary of 2 lakh Nepalese rupees and was also getting commission for the recovery of money from Indian borrowers," said a Nepal police officer. The amount is equivalent to Rs 1.25 lakh.

The Nepal police have discovered that Kumar had worked with the now-shut Tinkune call centre in Kathmandu. There too, he played the most important role in setting up the entire network. "It appears that he worked closely with the Chinese nationals. So after setting up the Tinkune centre, he moved to Rupandehi where he was working for the past 6 months," said the officer.

The Butwal call centre from where Kumar was arrested

The Cyber Bureau is also probing if he was involved in setting up more illegal call centres. "As of now, we see his active role in these two centres, but since he is directly reporting to the handlers, we believe he may be involved in other cases linked to Chinese nationals," said the officer. The police have also come across details that show that Kumar was in touch with now-arrested Hu Yuehua, a Chinese national and head of the Tinkune call centre. Kumar also reported to Frank and his wife Amala Rana Magar, the heads of the Rupandehi call centre. Both escaped from the place hours before the raid.

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No of months Kumar has been in Nepal