New Delhi: A routine visit to a bank to update a passbook unravelled a Rs 10.24-crore fraud that allegedly went on for three years, with a Punjab National Bank (PNB) employee now accused of misusing bank officials’ credentials, disabling transaction alerts and siphoning off customers’ savings and fixed deposits at a Greater Noida branch. The victims, many of them farmers who had sold their land for the Jewar airport project, are now looking to the CBI to unravel how their life savings disappeared.
The CBI’s FIR comes after Gautam Buddha Nagar police FIR against unidentified bank employees of the PNB, who were involved in the alleged fraud, after multiple farmers, who secured compensation from the UP Government after they sold their land for construction of the Jewar Airport, reported their savings bank account and fixed deposits were “emptied out”.
ThePrint has reported on how farmers had saved their life savings, many had plans to build a new house, get their children married. However, uncertainty has taken over the entire village of Birondi, Greater Noida, where most of the aggrieved farmers live.
The CBI FIR has been based on the complaint of the Sector-Pi branch of the PNB Bank against bank official Deepanshi, who worked as Office Assistant/Sub Staff at the Branch Sector-Pi, Greater Noida, and others—Ashutosh Pathak, Pradeep Kumar, Membanti Devi, Priyanka Kumari, Shanti Devi, Shalini, Saroj Devi (account holders) along with some unknowns persons and unknown public servants for “hatching a criminal conspiracy, with connivance of each other to perpetrate financial fraud, criminal breach of trust, cheating, forgery, falsification of accounts”, etc. under the Bhartiya Nyay Sanhita 2023 to the tune of “Rs 10.24 crore”.
The complaint was filed by the bank’s authorised representative Ajay Kumar Pandey, Chief Manager, based on bank records.
CBI launches probe in PNB Greater Noida case
In the CBI FIR, Pandey submitted that a customer Sangita, who had a savings account at the Sector-Pi branch at Greater Noida, approached the bank along with her husband and daughter to update her passbook, and found three transactions dated 16 September “to have been carried out from her account without her knowledge, and asked to meet the branch head. The branch head was not available. However, accused staff Deepanshi immediately met them and convinced them of the genuineness of the transaction,” the FIR said.
“The incident involving complaint of customer’s husband regarding serious irregularities in the account of Ms Sangita, were brought to the notice of the Branch Head, and she questioned Ms Deepanshi about the incident, to which Ms Deepanshi informed that Ms Sangita had a word with her husband over the phone and informed that she had invested in property and transferred the disputed transaction amount to the account of Mr Ashutosh Pathak,” the FIR reads.
Thereafter, considering the complaint and the amount involved, it was found that the relevant vouchers backing the three disputed transactions of that particular date were missing and could not be traced at the branch.
The FIR states, “This caused suspicion in the mind of the branch head and on further questioning, Ms Deepanshi broke down and admitted that the transactions were carried out on the instructions of another account holder Ashutosh Pathak.”
Pathak, who is known to Deepanshi, “also confessed disclosing the modus operandi and admitting commission of fraud involving unauthorised debit transactions in the accounts of the customers of the bank misusing the credentials of branch officials without their consent and knowledge,” the FIR states.
Pandey has alleged that “Deepanshi further stated that she had destroyed the vouchers relating to the unauthorised debit transactions as no supporting customer instructions and/or approvals of branch officials were available.”
The above disclosure of Deepanshi caused the branch head to conduct further verification of the account of Ashutosh Pathak and it was found that the account of “Ashutosh Pathak was opened by Deepanshi, (as per her confession) and there were several transactions to the account of Ashutosh Pathak, Pradeep Kumar, Membanti Devi, Priyanka Kumari, Shanti Devi, Shalini, Saroj Devi (all co-accused) from the account of several customers of the bank, meaning thereby that the funds were without authorisation debited from the accounts of other customers”.
The money was “…transferred directly to the account of Ashutosh Pathak or routed through the account of Mr Pradeep Kumar, Membanti Devi, Priyanka Kumari, Shanti Devi, Shalini, Saroj Devi to the account of Ashutosh Pathak or otherwise withdrawn. All the disputed debit transactions ultimately reached the account of Mr Ashutosh Pathak, in a well planned manner, suggesting a pattern of systematic diversion of customer funds with unauthorised debit transactions,” reads the FIR.
Modus operandi of fraudulent transactions
The PNB bank complaint said, as per the preliminary investigation of the branch head, “Relevant vouchers backing the transactions in question were missing i.e., no such vouchers were available in the records of the bank.”
Further, the FIR states that the “review of system logs, user activity records and transactions prima facie revealed that multiple unauthorised transactions had been carried out in customer accounts over a substantial period of time (three years) by misuse of CBS user IDs belonging to different officials of the branch by Ms Deepanshi.”
“It is further alleged that mobile transaction alerts associated with certain customer accounts were disabled before the transactions were carried out, thereby delaying the detection of unauthorised debits by the affected customers,” the FIR states.
The FIR states that in many fixed deposit accounts (which were broken and money taken out), Pathak and other accused were added as joint holders.
“The repayment account details were subsequently modified, and the FDRs were prematurely closed. The proceeds of the closed FDRs were then credited to the beneficiary account of the suspected fraudster,” said the FIR.
As per the CBI FIR, “Funds originating from customer accounts were routed through various beneficiary accounts including the accounts of Mr Ashutosh Kumar Pathak and other persons presently under verification. The money trail indicates a common pattern of diversion and consolidation of customer funds.”
‘Common intent, connivance, organised financial fraud’
According to PNB, the reconciliation of customer-wise transactions is underway. “The number of transactions is substantial and additional affected accounts and beneficiaries may emerge upon detailed scrutiny of records. The exact amount involved is therefore under reconciliation and shall be provided separately upon completion of account-wise verification.”
The matter has been reported to the bank’s circle office for carrying out a detailed investigation.
The FIR states, “Without prejudice to further transactions which may emerge, as on date we are able to identify unauthorised debit of Rs 10.24 crore from various customer accounts which has been siphoned off by Ms Deepanshi, in connivance and conspiracy with Mr Ashutosh Kumar Pathak, Mr Pradeep Kumar, Membanti Devi, Priyanka Kumari, Shanti Devi, Shalini, Saroj Devi and several other unknown persons.”
Importantly, Deepanshi, who was an Office Assistant/Sub Staff and was “not authorised” under the bank’s internal guidelines and delegation matrix to independently carry out the transactions. The manner in which CBS user IDs of various officials were “utilised, whether the same were shared, obtained or otherwise accessed, the role of the concerned officials and the role of all beneficiaries require detailed investigation,” the FIR says.
The FIR adds that Deepanshi “misused access available to her, in gross violation of service code of conduct and ethical standards, by carrying out unauthorised debits in the accounts of the customers of the bank and destroying the vouchers.”
PNB’s preliminary findings presently indicate “unauthorised use of banking credentials, manipulation of customer account particulars, diversion of customer funds, alteration of FDR details, premature closure of FDRs and routing of proceeds through beneficiary accounts.”
The CBI FIR adds that the accused acted with “common intent, connived and conspired to commit an organised financial fraud for their illegal gain causing monetary loss of public money from the custody of bank, by carrying out unauthorised debit transactions.”
“The staff accountability as per policy of the bank has been initiated by the bank against erring officials and a detailed investigation is under process,” states the FIR.
“Prima facie the bank is also unable to ascertain role and direct involvement of account holders whose accounts were without authorisation debited during the period of three years because as on date no such formal complaints has been received by the bank, even from our customer Ms Sangita, whose husband and daughter questioned the three disputed transactions, which triggered the internal investigation suspecting irregularities and fraud. Hence possibility of customer involvement also to be looked into,” the FIR states.
Requesting the CBI to investigate, PNB in its complaint said, “…misusing the banking platform with ill-intent is a serious threat and in violation of law of land”.
(Edited by Viny Mishra)