The Central Crime Branch (CCB), Coimbatore city, have arrested a former manager and an assistant manager of Cheran Maa Nagar branch of the Indian Bank in connection with the incident wherein a man hailing from Kerala obtained a loan to the tune of ₹1.32 crore by pledging fake jewellery. CCB officials said that former bank manager I. Premkumar from Sowripalayam and the assistant manager T. Usha from Vilankurichi road were arrested on Sunday for offences under Sections 120 B (criminal conspiracy), 409 (criminal breach of trust by public servant or by banker, merchant or agent) and 420 (cheating and dishonestly inducing delivery of property) of the Indian Penal Code. According to the CCB, P. Regi (47) of Ernakulam, P. Hemamalini of Gandhi Maa Nagar and T. Mathankumar of Balamurugan Nagar near Kalapatti had availed of a loan of ₹ 1.32 crore by pledging 4.07 kg of jewellery from Cheran Maa Nagar branch of the Indian Bank. Based on the information that Regi had a forgery case against him in Kerala, the gold pledged by Regi and the two others were checked by the bank authorities on October 27, 2021. The checking found that the three accused pledged 4.07 kg of fake gold jewellery to obtain a loan of ₹1.32 crore. The CCB arrested Regi on January 30 this year based on a complaint lodged by P. Subramanian, zonal manager of the Indian Bank, zonal office, Coimbatore. According to CCB officials, the pledged jewellery were in the dual custody of the former manager and assistant managers of the bank. The bank had placed them under suspension when the three borrowers remained at large after availing of the loan.
