The Goa police crime branch has arrested two more individuals, including the alleged mastermind, in a Rs 5.3 crore fraud involving the Goa Samagra Shiksha Abhiyan (GSSA) funds meant for school education schemes. This brings the total number of arrests in the case to seven.
Crime Branch SP Rahul Gupta identified the arrested as Mriganka Joarder (37) and Subhashis Sikdar, both residents of West Bengal. Mobile phones and SIM cards were seized from them for further investigation.
Sikdar is believed to be the mastermind behind a major financial scam that involved the illegal withdrawal of Rs 1.8 crore from the GSSA Society’s account at Bank of India, Porvorim branch. He allegedly accessed the bank account with the help of an associate, Alamin Mondal, using forged cheques to siphon government funds.
SP Gupta said Sikdar played a central role in executing the fraud and converting the stolen money into bank credits using fake identities and mule accounts to hide the illegal origin of funds.
Joarder was involved in handling the laundered money. He managed another bank account registered under Sonum Auto Sale, owned by Sumanta Mondal, which received Rs 49.4 lakh from the stolen funds. Joarder’s role was crucial in moving and concealing the stolen money.
