Court sends PMC Bank ex-MD Joy Thomas to police custody until 17 October

Police say they want to question the former PMC Bank MD for the alleged Rs 4,355 crore scam, but his lawyers claim he he is being made a 'scapegoat'.

Joy Thomas, suspended MD of PMC Bank, being produced before a court in connection with a multi-crore cheating case | PTI

Mumbai: Former managing director of Punjab and Maharashtra Cooperative (PMC) Bank, Joy Thomas, arrested in connection with the alleged Rs 4,355 crore scam at the bank, was on Saturday remanded in police custody till October 17.

The Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of Mumbai Police, which had arrested Thomas on Friday, produced him before Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate S G Shaikh.

The police told the court that they need his custody to interrogate him as he was part of the conspiracy.

However, Thomas’s lawyer argued that he is being made a “scapegoat”.

On Thursday, the EOW had arrested directors of the bankrupt Housing Development and Infrastructure (HDIL) Rakesh Wadhawan and his son Sarang in connection with the case. They are in police custody till October 9.

The EOW had registered an FIR on Monday against senior officials of HDIL and PMC Bank for allegedly causing losses to the tune of Rs 4,355.43 crore to the bank.

The FIR named former PMC Bank chairman Waryam Singh, Thomas and other senior officials, besides the Wadhawan duo.

The Enforcement Directorate had conducted raids at six locations in and around Mumbai on Friday after taking cognisance of the FIR registered by the EOW.

According to police, the HDIL promoters allegedly colluded with the bank management to take loans from its Bhandup branch in Mumbai.