A 73-year-old “loan shark” is under investigation after a businesswoman claimed he demanded sexual favours after she fell behind with her repayments.
The man, who lives in Old Aberdeen, was detained by police for interview after his victim contacted the authorities.
Trading Standards officers have removed several items from his home as part of the investigation into alleged illegal money lending.
Officials were contacted after the woman, who is in her forties and lives in the city centre, claimed she arranged a loan worth £10,000 with the man in order to prop up her small business.
After she ran into difficulty making the repayments, which included £3,000 interest over a 13-month period, the woman claimed she became under increasing pressure from the lender.
Fiona Richardson, chief officer of Trading Standards Scotland, which is leading the investigation, said: “We had a complaint from someone who borrowed money from this person.
“She had initially been paying it back but had got into some difficulty paying and he started to put pressure on her.
“There was certainly a suggestion that he was looking for sexual favours and pressured her at her place of work.”
Ms Richardson said the man had a reputation in the Aberdeen area as someone you would ‘go to’ for a cash loan
“People were recommended to him through word of mouth,” she said.
Ms Richardson said the investigating team were still going through items recovered from the man’s house, with forensic tests due on his mobile phone and computer to determine his business activities.
It is understood that the man started illegal money lending after retiring from his professional life.
Ms Richardson said officers were working to establish the extend of his client base and hoped to interview any further clients.
Money lenders can face prosecution if they are found to be operating without a licence from the Financial Conduct Authority.
A report is due to be passed to the Procurator Fiscal.