An assistant manager of Indian Overseas Bank, Rajim branch, has been arrested for embezzling over Rs 1 crore by issuing fake jewel loans. The arrest was made by the State Economic Offenses Investigation Bureau (EOW), and the accused, Ankita Panigrahi, was caught from Bargarh, Odisha. After the arrest, the police began interrogating her and taking further legal action.
What exactly happened?
In 2022, Ankita Panigrahi was working as an Assistant Manager at the Rajim branch of Indian Overseas Bank, located in Gariaband district. During her time there, she misused closed bank accounts to create fake jewelry loan records. By doing this, she was able to fraudulently withdraw a total of Rs 1 crore 65 lakh from the bank.
When this scam came to light, the bank immediately terminated her employment. Then in 2023, the Economic Offenses Wing (EOW) officially registered a case against her. The case was filed under Section 13(a) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 (as amended in 2018), and Section 409 of the Indian Penal Code, which deals with criminal breach of trust by a public servant.
For a long time, Ankita had been absconding (hiding from the authorities), but the EOW finally tracked her down in Bargarh, Odisha. She was taken into police custody (remand) so that officials could question her thoroughly about the fraud. The EOW is now conducting a detailed investigation to uncover the full extent of the scam and to check whether other people were involved.
