CBI Court Sentences Ex-UCO Bank Employee to 3 Years in Rs 25 Lakh Fraud Case
Click to start listening
Synopsis
A Special CBI court in Patna has sentenced A.K. Biswas, a former UCO Bank employee, to three years of rigorous imprisonment for his involvement in a bank fraud case amounting to Rs 25 lakh. He was also fined Rs 6 lakh. Investigations revealed that he exploited his position to embezzle funds through a fictitious account.
Key Takeaways
- Former UCO Bank employee sentenced to three years' RI.
- Involved in a bank fraud of Rs 25 lakh.
- Utilized forged documents to withdraw funds.
- Investigation revealed fraudulent activities from 1986 to 1989.
- CBI also pursuing related fraud cases.
Patna, March 30 (NationPress) A Special CBI court in Patna has imposed a sentence of three years’ Rigorous Imprisonment (RI) along with a fine of Rs 6 lakh on a former employee of UCO Bank, linked to a bank fraud case totaling Rs 25 lakh, according to an official announcement on Sunday.
A.K. Biswas, who served as the Special Assistant at the UCO Bank, Frazer Road Branch in Patna, was among those charged by the federal investigative agency on January 20, 1992.
The allegations state that during the timeframe from 1986 to 1989, the accused established a fake account at the Frazer Road branch, artificially inflated the credit balance, and subsequently withdrew funds fraudulently.
Investigations revealed that Biswas was assigned to the branch from 1983 to 1991 and embezzled a total of Rs 25.70 lakh by utilizing forged and fabricated debit vouchers that he approved.
The CBI's chargesheet indicated that the accused opened a savings account with an initial deposit of Rs 25 in cash, which he himself introduced.
Numerous fraudulent credit entries were recorded in the ledger of this account by the accused, who illicitly withdrew funds based on cheques and withdrawal slips that were written in his own handwriting.
Initially, three separate cases were registered regarding this matter but were later consolidated due to the commonality of documents and allegations, as well as shared witnesses across the cases.
Upon concluding the investigation, a single chargesheet was presented by the CBI against Biswas, with formal charges being outlined on June 22, 2006.
Following the trial, the court found the accused guilty and imposed the sentence accordingly.
In a different bank fraud matter, the CBI initiated two cases on March 25 against a former Branch Manager of the State Bank of India, Ramakrishnanagar Branch, Karimganj, Assam (the accused in both instances), along with two private individuals (one in each case) on accusations of bank fraud and corruption/bribery.
It was claimed that the accused Branch Manager, in collusion with some intermediaries, authorized Xpress Credit Loans to various ineligible borrowers during the years 2023-24 in exchange for illegal benefits or bribes, which were allegedly gathered by the two accused middlemen and unnamed others from the borrowers.
Search operations conducted by the CBI at four locations, including Gaya (Bihar), Hailakandi (Assam), and two areas in Silchar (Assam), led to the recovery of significant amounts of jewelry (gold - 481 gm, diamond - 11.11 gm, and silver) from the residential property of the accused Branch Manager in Silchar, Assam.
Additionally, various incriminating documents such as transaction details with middlemen, invoices for jewelry purchases, documents pertaining to the Xpress Credit, and electronic devices including computer drives, mobile phones, and tablets were also seized during the searches, as reported by the CBI.
