Alleged scam $Rs 7.31 crore related to the theft of ornaments from gold loan accounts and replacing them with fake jewelery was detected at a Canara Bank branch in Maharashtra’s Jalna district, police said on Sunday.
Two people have been arrested in this connection and a case has been registered against the manager of the nationalized bank’s Badnapur branch, another officer and a gold appraiser, they added.
The irregularities were recently revealed during the routine quarterly revaluation of gold loan packages held in the bank.
On April 22, officials found several packages containing counterfeit gold. The investigation showed that 22 gold loan packages contained imitation jewelry $3.79 Crores. In addition to 30 gold boxes worth $An official from Badnapur police station said Rs 3.52 crore was missing from the strong room.
He said analysis of CCTV footage dated April 23 showed a bank employee stealing gold packets from the strong room and hiding them.
According to police, the branch manager allegedly violated security protocols by allowing the officer to access the strong room alone, demonstrating neglect of duty.
The gold appraiser is also accused of certifying the counterfeit gold as genuine, facilitating the fraud, they said.
Based on a complaint from a senior bank official, Badnapur police registered a case on Friday against the three accused on charges of breach of trust, fraud and negligence under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita Act.
The police said that two people have been arrested so far, while investigations are still ongoing, without identifying the detainees.
Badnapur police inspector MT Servasi said police were investigating the possibility of a bigger conspiracy and the involvement of more individuals.
