Mumbai: Vanrai police have arrested three members of a gang for stealing demand drafts (DD) and cheques from a courier company’s office, which they had encashed.
Police said that the accused opened fake bank accounts to deposit the DD and cheques. The gang is suspected of stealing cheques worth Rs 2 lakh. At least three more members of the gang are yet to be nabbed.
In November, a few customers from a private bank complained of not receiving the cheques and DDs, which were issued to them by the bank. When the bank conducted preliminary enquiry, it was revealed, the DDs and cheques were encashed in the accounts.
The bank officials then questioned the logistics company, located at Silver Metropolis in Goregaon (E), which sent the DDs through a courier company. It was then revealed, the documents had gone missing from the courier company’s office.
Police said, to investigate the matter at their level, the bank officials hid near the courier company’s entrance door to catch the accused red handed.
On November 29, the bank officials laid a trap and nabbed two persons, who had broken into the office and were escaping with the cheques and DD leaflets. The officials handed them over to Vanrai Police and registered a case of theft.
During investigation, it was revealed the arrested duo were a part of a bigger syndicate that used the same modus operandi of stealing cheques and DDs from logistic companies.
“The accused revealed, they opened fake bank accounts in the name of cheque recipient and encashed it. The gang is suspected to have duped hundreds of people using this trick.
Until now, the amount of cheating has crossed Rs 2 lakh and further investigation will increase the amount,” said an investigating officer.
Further probe led to the arrest of a third accused, but the kingpins of the syndicate are still at large. Police have booked the accused under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code for theft (section 379), cheating (section 420) and criminal conspiracy (section 120B).
