Surat continues to grapple with the rising menace of loan sharks, and shockingly, such illegal activities are now emerging from families associated with law enforcement. In a major crackdown, Udhna Police have arrested two loan sharks, including the son of a former police sub-inspector, for extorting money at exorbitant interest rates and threatening victims with dire consequences. According to police officials, the prime accused, 40-year-old Deepak Sureshbhai Pawar, is the son of a retired police sub-inspector. While society generally expects individuals from police families to uphold the law, Deepak was doing the opposite— trapping financially weak citizens in a vicious cycle of illegal lending and extortion. This isn’t the first time Deepak has been in the spotlight. In the past, he had made headlines after a firing incident at his office, where he had appeared as the complainant. However, this time, he stands exposed as the main perpetrator in a serious loan-sharking case. As per the FIR lodged with Udhna Police, the complainant had borrowed money from the accused at an exorbitant interest rate of 10% per month. Despite repaying ₹90,000 towards the principal amount, the accused remained unsatisfied and demanded an additional ₹40,000. When the complainant failed to meet their demands, Deepak Pawar and his associate Laxman Thakur allegedly threatened him, forcibly collected an additional ₹45,000, and continued issuing life threats along with abusive calls. Their modus operandi involved taking signed blank cheques and promissory notes from borrowers at the time of giving loans. In this case too, they had obtained blank cheques from the complainant. To create pressure, they later filled one cheque with an inflated amount of ₹3,50,000 and deposited it in the bank, intending to get it bounced and then file a false legal case. Police investigations revealed that the second accused, 39-year-old Laxman Motilal Thakur, is a habitual offender. He had previously been arrested in a similar loan-sharking case. Without any legal license, Laxman was illegally lending money at steep interest rates and extorting borrowers using threats and intimidation. After the victim bravely registered a complaint at Udhna Police Station, Inspector and surveillance teams swung into action immediately. Within hours, the police arrested both accused from Udhna and Dindoli areas. A formal case has been registered, and both men have been sent behind bars pending further legal action. The arrests have once again raised serious concerns about the growing influence and boldness of loan sharks in the city, especially those misusing their family’s law-enforcement background to exploit vulnerable citizens.
