PNB Greater Noida 'Sector Pi' Branch Scam: Caught on CCTV! How an employee used 6 logins to transfer customers' money

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has launched an investigation into an alleged fraud involving crores of rupees at a Punjab National Bank (PNB) branch in Uttar Pradesh’s Greater Noida.

The case registered by the CBI’s Anti-Corruption Bureau (Ghaziabad) on Thursday involved the alleged diversion of funds worth crores of rupees belonging to various savings and fixed deposit account holders of the Punjab National Bank (PNB) branch in ‘Sector Pi’ of Greater Noida, Uttar Pradesh, news agency PTI reported.

Noida police has also filed an FIR in the case.

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who are the accused?

The CBI has named branch assistant Deepanshi Sharma, account holder Ashutosh Pathak and unknown public and private persons as accused under various sections of the BNS.

They were charged with criminal conspiracy, breach of trust, cheating, falsifying accounts and public servant offences.

The complaint also names Pradeep Kumar, Membangti Devi, Priyanka Kumari, Shanti Devi, Shalini and Saroj Devi as beneficiaries. The role of each is yet to be determined.

The FIR also includes sections of the Prevention of Corruption Act and the Information Technology (IT) Act.

Deepanshi has been working in PNB Greater Noida ‘Sector Pi’ branch since 2021.

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How much money is involved in the scam?

The bank is said to have estimated the unauthorized withdrawals at ₹10.24 crore, subject to approval.

Customers claimed that almost ₹35 million crowns are missing from their savings accounts and fixed deposits.

Many of them are farmers who have deposited the compensation received for land acquired for the Noida International Airport project, now renamed the Narendra Modi International Airport, Jewar, the Times of India reported.

How did the “fraud” come to light?

The CBI filed the FIR after taking cognizance of a written complaint sent to it on October 23 by the senior manager of PNB’s Noida Circle against the employees of the ‘Sector Pi’ branch and some other account holders.

In its complaint, PNB said the alleged fraud came to light after the account holder approached the branch manager on September 16 to report three suspicious debit transactions in her account.

On September 16, customer Sangeeta visited the branch with her husband and daughter to update her passbook. She found three transactions that she said she neither authorized nor was informed about, TOI reported.

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Deepanshi Sharma reportedly told her that they were legit. When the matter reached the branch management, she alleged that Sangeeta had agreed with her husband over the phone to transfer money to Pathak for investment in real estate.

The bank was unable to locate matching vouchers, prompting further investigation. Deepanshi then allegedly told the officials that the transfers were made on Pathak’s instructions and that she had used the credentials without the officials’ knowledge.

According to PTI, the bank said the branch has so far identified the “unauthorised” debit ₹10.24 crore from various customer accounts which the accused allegedly siphoned off over the past three years.

PNB’s complaint stated that a reconciliation is underway at the branch to ascertain the exact amount that was allegedly defrauded.

According to the Times of India, preliminary findings indicated that the diversion could begin in 2023, although the number of affected customers has not yet been determined.

How was the fraud committed?

In the complaint sent to the CBI, PNB said, according to PTI, that when the branch manager questioned Deepanshi about the suspicious transactions, she “broke down and admitted that the transactions were done on the instructions of one of the account holders, Ashutosh Pathak…who is known to her”.

According to PTI, preliminary findings indicate unauthorized use of bank credentials, manipulation of customer account details, diversion of customer funds, alteration of FDR (Fixed Deposit Receipts) details, premature closure of FDRs and routing of proceeds through beneficiary accounts.

“Review of system logs, user activity records and prima facie transactions revealed that several unauthorized transactions were made in customer accounts over a long period of time by misuse of CBS (Core Banking Solution) user IDs belonging to officials of various branches by Deepanshi,” PNB’s complaint in the CBI FIR said.

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How an office assistant used six logins to transfer customers’ money

Deepanshi Sharma, an office assistant at Punjab National Bank’s Sector Pi-1 branch in Greater Noida, emerged as a key suspect in the alleged fraud after CCTV footage showed her going to colleagues’ desks while they were away manning their workstations, the Times of India reported.

The bank reportedly suspects that Deepanshi used officials’ credentials to change customer details and transfer money without authorization.

In its complaint, the bank allegedly said it used credentials of six officials, including branch manager Nisha Tirkey, senior customer service associate Sandeep Prakash Sharma, customer service associates Meenakshi and Satish Kumar and Shailendra Kumar and Lovely Jain.

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The bank reviewed about a month’s worth of CCTV footage, which allegedly showed Sharma moving to a colleague’s workstation whenever an employee left.

In its complaint, the bank told CBI officials that Sharma was seen sitting at an empty desk, looking at a screen and using a keyboard before she left within seconds.

According to TOI, preliminary investigations suggest that a substantial part of the money moved through at least six accounts in Jharkhand, Goa and Maharashtra before reaching an account belonging to Pathak, a resident of Aichhar.

The alleged fraud was not limited to savings accounts. According to the complaint, account holder Ashutosh Kumar Pathak and others were added as co-owners to several fixed deposits, account details were changed to receive returns and deposits were closed prematurely.

According to TOI, the transaction vouchers were allegedly destroyed to hide the transfers. The bank has reportedly submitted details of 49 fixed deposits

Key questions in the investigation

While the CCTV review has shed light on the modus operandi, key questions remain, including whether other bank members were involved. Investigators said it was unlikely that Sharma acted alone, TOI reported.

They added that the appearance of an official’s user ID in a transaction record does not in itself show that the official participated. The CBI will need to use basic bank records, login history and user activity logs to determine if login information has been accessed without permission, shared or used with someone else.

Investigators will also look into how an office assistant gained access to the credentials of multiple officials, whether supervisory checks were bypassed and why missing vouchers and unusual transfers did not prompt an earlier crackdown.

They are checking to see if customers’ registered mobile numbers and email addresses have been changed and alerts disabled, which could explain why some account holders haven’t received any alerts.