No Complaint, Yet Big Catch: Raipur Police Arrest Odisha Fraudster Before Scam Execution
Raipur: In a major breakthrough under proactive policing, the Raipur Commissionerate Police have arrested a notorious habitual offender from Odisha who was allegedly planning a multi-crore inter-state bank fraud by posing as an AIIMS doctor.
The accused, identified as 32-year-old Sridhar Raut from Cuttack district, had been living in Raipur’s Kabir Nagar area under a false identity for the past seven months. Police said his arrest thwarted a well-planned financial conspiracy targeting banks and individuals.
According to officials, Raut had adopted multiple fake identities, including that of a doctor associated with AIIMS, to gain the trust of bank officers, businessmen, and local residents. By projecting himself as a high-profile and credible loan applicant, he aimed to secure large bank loans for purchasing land and luxury vehicles such as a Fortuner, with plans to abscond after disbursal — a method he had allegedly used in the past.
Investigations revealed that he was also attempting to defraud locals by building credibility through false claims and identities. In previous instances, he had reportedly duped medical students by promising visas and fraudulently retaining their passports.
Police highlighted that no formal complaint had been filed by any bank or victim at the time of action. Instead, the arrest was the result of intelligence gathering, local surveillance, and timely intervention, preventing potential losses worth crores.
Raut has a criminal history in Odisha, with multiple cases registered at Cuttack’s Sadar police station under various IPC sections, including cheating, forgery, and impersonation. He had earlier served jail time for bank-related frauds before relocating to Raipur and resuming similar activities.
During the arrest, police recovered a large number of forged documents, including fake Aadhaar and PAN cards, SIM cards, bank passbooks, and ATM cards under different names, passports of other individuals, fabricated educational certificates, and counterfeit identity cards of reputed institutions, including AIIMS.
Officials said the scale and diversity of forged documents indicate a well-organised and premeditated fraud operation rather than an isolated criminal activity.
The police have urged citizens and banking institutions to remain vigilant, verify credentials independently—especially in cases involving high-profile claims—and ensure proper police verification of tenants and domestic workers. Authorities also advised reporting suspicious activity immediately via emergency services or the nearest police station.
The case underscores the growing threat of organised inter-state fraud networks operating under false identities, and the importance of proactive policing in preventing financial crimes before they occur.
