EOW arrests absconding accused Praful Chaudhari in Rs 23.19 crore ICICI Bank gold loan fraud in Nagpur

The Economic Offences Wing (EOW) in Nagpur has arrested another accused in the alleged Rs 23.19 crore fraud in ICICI Bank gold loans. A gang is alleged to have tampered with the gold loan process, got loans worth crores sanctioned in the names of fake borrowers and cheated the bank by passing off fake gold jewellery as genuine.

The arrested accused is Praful Ashok Chaudhari, 39, a resident of Telangkhedi, Ramnagar. He is one member of the gang to have now been caught by the police.

An FIR was registered at Dhantoli police station on March 30, 2026. The case came to light when, during a bank audit, an auditor doubted the purity of gold jewellery pledged against one account.

As the matter appeared serious, gold loan accounts at the bank's various branches were also audited. The gold loan accounts examined were at the Manish Nagar, Medical Chowk, Narsala, Katol Road, Ajni Chowk, Chhatrapati Chowk, Wardha Road, Pratap Nagar and Nandanvan branches.

In each account, the police traced in whose name the loan was sanctioned, what was shown as the pledge, into which account the loan amount went and to which accounts it was then transferred. The police thus went through the entire money trail of the loan amounts.

Searches at the accused's premises led to the seizure of mobile phones, laptops and vehicles, along with important documents related to bank transactions. The investigating team also found a list of fake gold loan customers, which played an important role in connecting the links of the entire network.

Other accused in the case had been arrested earlier, but Chaudhari had been absconding. The police arrested him on Wednesday. The court has ordered that he be kept in police custody till October 30.