Bank of India Officer Arrested by ED in Rs 16.10 Crore Fraud Case
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The Directorate of Enforcement (ED), Mumbai, has arrested Hitesh Kumar Singla, an Officer of Bank of India, from Ahmedabad Junction Railway Station under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 (PMLA). The Officer was earlier suspended by Bank of India. He was produced before the Special PMLA Court, Greater Bombay, which granted ED custody for seven days.
What is the case all about?
The CBI had filed a case against Singla and Others under Section 409 of IPC, Section 316(5) of BNS, and Sections 13(1)(a) and 13(2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988.
As the case involved money laundering, it was transferred to ED and ED started its investigation.
Investigations revealed that between May 2023 and July 2025, Singla fraudulently closed multiple accounts—including Term Deposits (TDs), Public Provident Fund (PPF), Senior Citizen Savings Scheme (SCSS), Savings Bank (SB), and Current Accounts (CA)—without authorization. The funds were then diverted to his personal SBI savings accounts.
According to the ED, Singla deliberately targeted 127 account holders, mostly vulnerable customers such as senior citizens, minors, deceased persons, and dormant account holders, to avoid detection.
The diverted funds were layered and transferred in small, concealed transactions, causing a total loss of ₹16.10 crore to Bank of India and its customers, while severely damaging the bank’s reputation and public trust.
Since the fraud came to light, Singla had been absconding and failed to report to the bank. Based on intelligence inputs and technical surveillance, ED intercepted him at Ahmedabad Junction. Despite repeated attempts to evade detection by frequently changing seats and coaches on Train No. 19320 Mahamana Express (Ujjain–Veraval), he was arrested.
Following the arrest, ED also conducted searches under Section 17 of PMLA at the premises of one of his associates. The investigation is ongoing and more details will be released soon.
