Police arrest one for Rs 2 crore gold theft
Hyderabad: The Vikarabad police arrested branch manager Vishal for the alleged theft of gold worth Rs 2 crore from a Kerala-based non-banking finance firm which provides gold loans online. According to a complaint, he was accused of creating fake customer IDs and logging fraudulent loan applications.
Vishal disappeared with 63 gold packets worth Rs 2 crore. He was arrested in Narayanapur of Karnataka on Friday.
According to Vikarabad SP K. Narayana Reddy, the company’s regional manager Ravindra Kumar reported a discrepancy during an audit conducted by his team in October. He suspected Vishal when he was not reachable.
When the officials opened the strong room along with the auditor, they realised that 63 packets, containing approximately 2,944 grams of gold, were missing. Vishal along with junior assistants and an auditor conspired to this theft, said the SP.
The SP added: “Vishal had been managing the Vikarabad branch since July 2023. Under the regulations of the company, customers needed to provide identification documents to take gold loans. Once a customer ID is established, subsequent loans are provided with no other submissions.” Vishal created fake IDs and made fraudulent entries for gold worth Rs 2 crore.
It is suspected that the manager used the money for his personal expenses and online betting. The police recovered 83 grams of gold and Rs 10 lakh cash. Police are further continuing to investigate those who assisted Vishal. The SP said that customers had no reason to worry.