New Delhi: The discovery of a fraudulent scheme within an ICICI Bank branch has revealed that a branch manager, with the assistance of accomplices, had been systematically withdrawing large sums of money from unsuspecting customers’ accounts over an extended period. The funds were illicitly utilized to meet business targets, and masqueraded under the guise of creating new fixed deposit accounts, current accounts, and savings accounts, as reported.
The situation escalated when someone became aware of the scheme and began blackmailing the bank officials involved. Consequently, the unauthorized withdrawals persisted, with the embezzled funds being used as hush money to silence the individual from Udaipur who was threatening to expose the operation.
The fraudulent activity, known in banking and accounting terms as ‘entry and reverse entry,’ involved the creation of overdrafts against existing fixed deposits, with the proceeds used to open new accounts. These newly created accounts would then be promptly closed, and the misappropriated funds would be returned to their original source accounts. Shockingly, the scam had been ongoing for an extended period without proper record-keeping, with branch employees unwittingly facilitating the matching and reversal of transactions without knowledge of the underlying deception.
According to Rajasthan Police officials, the scheme has resulted in over ₹2.5 crores being paid to the individual from Udaipur who was extorting the branch manager. In response to these revelations, an ICICI Bank spokesperson assured that genuine customers would not suffer any financial losses. Additionally, the implicated employee has been suspended pending further investigation, and the bank has filed a complaint with the police, pledging full cooperation with their inquiries.
A special investigation team (SIT) has taken action by freezing 62 bank accounts associated with the scam, containing a total balance of ₹62.71 lakh. Furthermore, the team has seized ₹46 lakh in cash connected to the illicit activities.
