Big Fraud in SBI Kanpur, Rs 14.60 Lakh withdrawn from Dormant Account in PBB Branch on Mall Road

A major banking fraud worth ₹14.60 lakh has recently been uncovered at the State Bank of India’s (SBI) Personal Banking Branch (PBB) on Mall Road, Kanpur. The fraud involved withdrawing money from an inactive account in four installments. Shockingly, senior officials tried to hide the matter for several days, but the scam was exposed after an anonymous letter arrived at the bank on May 1. An investigation is now underway, and several bank officials and employees — including a member of the SBI Officers Association — have been implicated.

How the Fraud Happened

The account at the center of this scam belongs to Shiromani Yadav, a resident of 121-363 Civil Lines, Kanpur Nagar, Katri Bithoor Kala. This account, opened on July 19, 2006, had ₹14,60,500 in it. There was no mobile number linked to the account, and since there had been no activity for years, the bank deactivated it in 2022.

According to the letter sent to SBI’s Chief General Manager, a deputy manager from the bank — who is also part of the SBI Officers Association — was involved in the fraud. This official worked at the Regional Office II in Kanpur.

On March 25, 2025, the inactive account was reactivated through fake e-KYC (electronic Know Your Customer) procedures. Soon after, the money was withdrawn in four steps:

• April 2, 2025: ₹5 lakh withdrawn from the Vishwa Bank Barra branch (non-home branch).
• April 4, 2025: ₹5 lakh withdrawn from PBB Kanpur.
• April 9, 2025: ₹4.60 lakh withdrawn again from Vishwa Bank Barra branch.

The Clever Trick Behind the Scam

The fraud was carefully planned. The account holder’s address was listed as “121-363 Civil Lines Kanpur Nagar Katri Bithoor Kala,” but Civil Lines and Katri Bithoor are two far-apart locations in Kanpur. This raised suspicion, suggesting the fraudsters had submitted fake documents to update the account.

Interestingly, the account had been frozen in July 2022 by the bank’s Regional Office II. To reactivate it, the scammers bypassed the bank’s Aadhaar-based biometric KYC process, which normally requires a thumbprint or a one-time password (OTP) sent to the account holder’s mobile. They reactivated the account at the PBB branch on March 25, 2025, paid ₹500 to reopen it, and also issued a cheque book — something that had never been done for this account before. The cheque book was later delivered to someone known to the fraudsters.

SBI Deputy General Manager Rajiv Rawat confirmed that an investigation is in progress:

“The matter has come to notice. Officers have been sent to the registered address. Initial findings suggest that fake documents were used.”

Investigation and Bank Monitoring

Once the scam was discovered, the bank launched an investigation. Bank officials visited the registered address to check the facts. Early findings suggest that fake documents were indeed used.

SBI, like many other banks, has an Online Transaction Monitoring System (OTMS) that keeps track of all account activities. This system automatically alerts the base branch through email if it detects unusual transactions.

According to bank rules, it’s the responsibility of the branch manager or officer to confirm suspicious transactions with the account holder and report any wrongdoing immediately. In this case, when OTMS flagged the account, a bank employee at PBB marked it as “suspicious” and froze the account again on April 9, 2025, turning it back into an inactive account. More details about this case will be released soon.