Bengaluru city police have arrested eight individuals, including a bank manager and three sales executives, in connection with a nationwide fraud involving the siphoning of ₹97 crore from multiple bank accounts. The arrests were announced on Tuesday by Police Commissioner B Dayananda, who also stated that efforts are underway to apprehend three more suspects involved in the scam.
Among those arrested are Kishore Sahu, manager of Axis Bank’s Nagarabhavi branch; sales manager Manohar; sales executives Karthik and Rakesh; and mule account holders Lakshmikanth, Raghu Raj, Kengegowda, and Mala. The operation came to light after a Yelahanka resident lodged a complaint with the Cyber Economic and Narcotics (CEN) police on July 1, stating that he had been defrauded of ₹1.5 crore.
The victim revealed that in March, he had received a WhatsApp message inviting him to join a trading group, which promised massive returns. He was added to a VIP trading account, where he was lured into believing he could make ten times his investment. Initially depositing ₹50,000, the victim saw his account balance double within days. Encouraged by the apparent gains, he transferred ₹1.5 crore through multiple transactions between March and June 2024.
The trading account displayed an inflated balance of ₹28 crore, but when the victim attempted to withdraw the funds, he was asked to pay ₹75 lakh as a server management fee. Realizing something was wrong, he reported the incident to the police.
The investigation revealed that the stolen money had been funneled into two current accounts at Axis Bank’s Nagarabhavi branch, held by individuals from Chikkamagaluru. Bank manager Sahu failed to provide valid documentation for these accounts, raising suspicions. Further inquiry uncovered four more fraudulent accounts within the same branch, with transactions totaling ₹97 crore.
The arrests have exposed a network of corruption, and police continue their search for additional suspects as they work to unravel the full scope of the scam.
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