A gang of nine, including three women, which attempted to withdraw ₹10 crore from the account of a construction firm in Bhopal by presenting a forged cheque at a bank was arrested in Kilpauk police station limits in the city.
The police said Banumathi, Savithri and Prasad Mathew introduced themselves as representatives of a construction company based in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh, and presented a cheque belonging to the firm drawn on Punjab National Bank in Purasawalkam. They wanted to transfer ₹9.99 crore to an account of Chennai-based trust on Pantheon Road. Since it was a high value cheque, the staff of the bank grew suspicious and verified the authenticity of the cheque with the firm in Bhopal. As the firm in Bhopal denied issuing such a cheque, the staff called the police.
Investigation revealed that it was a wide network. A man from Kochi in Kerala gave the cheque to the three and instructed them to encash it in the city. The gang had a tie-up with the trust to get the money transferred into its account and later withdraw it for a commission.
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A senior police officer said, “We have arrested nine persons so far and seven more are suspected to be involved in the offence. Our initial investigation revealed that the firm had issued the cheque for ₹ 8,000 two years ago. Using the same cheque, the gang forged it and attempted to withdraw ₹9.9 crore. Based on a complaint from the manager, we have arrested nine accused and further investigation is on.”