PANAJI
The prime accused, wanted in Rs 5 crore fraud of Samagra Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) funds, had walked into the nationalised bank and changed the mobile number linked to official SSA accounts.
This negligence or deliberate act by the bank official/s facilitated a series of high-value transactions diverted to private accounts, operated by the mastermind.
Captured on CCTV of a private bank that alerted the SSA of the fraudulent transactions, the suspect has so far eluded identification.
Sources told The Goan that his image has been circulated among police stations across different States to check for any prior criminal record, which would help reveal his identity.
Of the Rs 5 crore misappropriated, only a few lakh rupees were frozen by the authorities while over Rs 4.50 crore was already diverted to different private bank accounts, and Rs 2 crore was traced to a garment trader in West Bengal who was recently arrested by Porvorim police.
Police are now probing how the main accused managed to replace the registered mobile number without triggering alerts. Whether Know Your Customer (KYC) norms were bypassed, either through manipulation or internal collusion is also under investigation.
The SSA and the bank involved are both under scrutiny even a senior official confirmed that the SSA had instructed the nationalized bank – where it holds its official account -- that only cheques signed by the Chief Accounts Officer were to be honoured. The arrangement was to be implemented till the SSA officials were back from an official meeting in Delhi.
“That instruction was reportedly ignored. The misuse of cheques is especially alarming given that the SSA’s cheque book was believed to be untouched and that routine transactions were conducted through bank-to-bank transfers. Nevertheless, both the SSA and the nationalised bank are under scanner and will be probed till the mastermind is arrested,” the source added.
