Patna: A Special CBI court in Patna has sentenced a former employee of UCO Bank to three years’ Rigorous Imprisonment (RI) with a fine of Rs 6 lakh in a bank fraud case involving Rs 25 lakh, an official said on Sunday.
A.K. Biswas, the then Special Assistant, UCO Bank, Fraser Road Branch, Patna, and others were booked by the federal probe agency on January 20, 1992.
It was alleged that during the period 1986 to 1989, the accused opened a fictitious account at the Frazer Road branch and inflated the credit balance and subsequently withdrew the same fraudulently.
Investigation disclosed that Biswas was posted in the branch from 1983-91 and cheated the bank to the tune of Rs 25.70 lakh while using forged and fabricated debit vouchers passed by him.
The CBI chargesheet said that the accused had opened a savings bank account with Rs 25 in cash which was introduced by him.
Several fake credit entries were made in the ledger sheet of this account by the accused who fraudulently withdrew money on the basis of cheques/withdrawal slips written in his own handwriting.
Initially, three cases were registered in the matter which were later amalgamated on the ground that documents and allegations were the same and the witnesses were common in all three cases.
After completion of investigation, a single chargesheet was filed by the CBI against Biswas, and charges were framed against the accused on June 22, 2006.
The court, after trial, held accused guilty and sentenced him accordingly.
In another bank fraud case, the CBI registered two cases on March 25 against a former Branch Manager of State Bank of India, Ramakrishnanagar Branch, Karimganj, Assam (accused in both cases), and two private persons (one each in two cases) on allegations of bank fraud and corruption/bribery.
It was alleged that the accused Branch Manager, in conspiracy with some middlemen, disbursed Xpress Credit Loans to various ineligible borrowers during 2023-24 in lieu of undue advantage/bribe, which were allegedly collected by the two accused middlemen and unknown others from the borrowers.
Searches were conducted by the CBI at premises of the aforesaid accused at four locations, including Gaya (Bihar), Hailakandi (Assam), two places at Silchar (Assam), which led to the recovery of substantial quantities of ornaments/jewellery (gold – 481 gm, diamond – 11.11 gm and silver) from the residential premises of accused Branch Manager at Silchar, Assam.
Various incriminating documents such as transaction details with middlemen, Bills/Invoices of purchasing of ornaments, documents related to the Xpress Credit, some electronic devices including drive of computer, mobile phone and tablet were also recovered during searches, said a CBI statement.
(IANS)
