In a significant breakthrough, the Punjab Vigilance Bureau has arrested Satnam Singh and Sarabjit Singh Numberdar, both residents of Sarupwal village in Sultanpur Lodhi tehsil, for their alleged involvement in a multi-crore embezzlement scheme at the State Bank of Patiala (now State Bank of India) in Sultanpur Lodhi.
The arrested individuals are accused, in collusion with bank officials, private individuals, and officers from the revenue department, of embezzling crores of rupees through fraudulent means. The Vigilance Bureau spokesperson confirmed on Tuesday that the investigation, which began after a vigilance enquiry, led to the registration of an FIR on March 9, 2017, under sections including 409 (criminal breach of trust), 420 (cheating), 467 (forgery of valuable security), 468 (forgery for cheating), 471 (using a forged document), and 120-B (criminal conspiracy) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
The accused allegedly conspired with the branch manager and other employees of the bank, as well as revenue officials, to fraudulently obtain loans and credit limits, diverting funds from the treasury. The investigation revealed that approximately Rs 3.71 crore was misappropriated through 14 loan files by April 30, 2016.
The Vigilance Bureau continues to probe further into the matter, seeking to uncover additional details of the scam.
