A Rs 29.83 lakh banking fraud allegedly targeting the account of a deceased woman has led to the arrest of a former private bank branch manager and an employee in Mumbai.
The Central Cyber Police have arrested a private bank’s former Chowpatty branch manager and an employee in connection with an alleged Rs 29.83 lakh fraud in which money was siphoned from the account of a deceased customer after her registered mobile number and email ID were allegedly changed using a forged customer request form. Another bank employee, identified as Ram Pal, is currently absconding.
The alleged fraud came to light after the bank received a complaint over unauthorised changes made to the registered mobile number and email ID linked to the account of late Vimla Patil.
An internal probe by the bank found that the account details were allegedly altered in July 2025 using a customer request form submitted at the bank’s Tardeo branch. However, the signatures on the form reportedly did not match Patil’s signatures available in the bank’s records.
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During the inquiry, Verma allegedly told the bank that Panjwani had instructed him to make the changes.
The altered contact details allegedly enabled access to Patil’s account, following which two fixed deposits worth Rs 14.87 lakh were prematurely closed. The proceeds were then allegedly moved through multiple banking channels, including RTGS, NEFT, UPI, IMPS and mobile banking, to several accounts.
Investigators found that three RTGS transactions of Rs 5 lakh each were allegedly transferred to an account held with another bank. The transaction trail also reportedly revealed payments made to jewellery outlets, adding another layer to the suspected money trail.
Confirming the arrests, Chimaji Adhav, senior inspector of the Central Cyber Police, said the investigation was underway.
The bank has alleged that Panjwani, Verma and Ram Pal conspired to prepare a customer request form in the name of the deceased woman and forged her signature.
Police are now probing the alleged conspiracy, tracing the flow of the siphoned funds and investigating the role of Ram Pal, who remains on the run.
