The Mohali police have arrested Jasvir Singh, a 56-year-old assistant manager of the Cooperative Bank in Sialba village, for allegedly siphoning off approximatelyRs3 crore from multiple customer accounts. The arrest follows a complaint lodged by Gurpreet Singh, the bank’s district manager stationed in Phase 2, Mohali.
Jasvir, a resident of Mullanpur, began his career at the bank as a helper in 2013 and gradually rose to the position of assistant branch manager. The fraud came to light when customers started reporting thefts amounting to Rs62 lakh from their accounts. However, as the investigation progressed, more customers have approached the police, suggesting that the total amount defrauded could escalate into several crores.
According to Mullanpur DSP Dharamvir Singh, Jasvir was apprehended near Sialba. The issue was first detected after he was transferred to the Gharuan branch, where the new branch manager, Tejpal Singh, noticed discrepancies between the cash on hand and the documented amounts. This led to the discovery of fake vouchers and unauthorized debits made using forged signatures.
The situation worsened when several customers alerted the bank about the fraud on Wednesday, prompting the bank to inform the Mohali SSP and initiate legal action against Jasvir.
Interestingly, police sources revealed that the accused had also been a victim of fraud, losing over a crore in a property deal with a friend. He is now facing multiple charges, including theft, criminal breach of trust, forgery, and cheating, under various sections of the Indian Penal Code.