Commercial Street police today busted a fake racket involving the making of fake driving licenses to help people get address proof.

The racket was busted when a passport applicant unwittingly gave his fake driving license to the police during address verification.

Mohammed Shahbaz Ansari from Uttar Pradesh was living with his brother-in-law, a tailor at Commercial Street. He had applied for a passport and had given the Commercial Street address.

"When assistant sub inspector Dondappa called him for address verification, he gave his driving license, which had had the address of Haveri district. Ansari didn't even know that a place called Haveri existed. When we questioned him, he admitted that he had paid Rs 1,300 to one Yasin Baig to get the license, so that he could get an address proof to open a bank account," said Mallesh, sub inspector, of Commercial Street police station.

Yasin Baig, a sales executive at ING Vysya Bank, opened new bank accounts and helped make fake address proofs. When Baig was arrested he spilled beans about the kingpin Fayaz Pasha, an agent in Yeshwantpur RTO; Mohammed Nayaz, an agent in Rajajinagar RTO, and Yesu Babu, who made fake seals and letter heads of various government offices.

"They made fake driving licenses by charging Rs 1300 to Rs 2,000. We have arrested all the five including Ansari who had got a fake license and Baig who helped him get it done," said the police.