Fake DDs used to siphon off Rs. 10.7 cr.

By Our Staff Reporter

BANGALORE, JAN. 23. Two notorious inter-State criminals, including S.A.Ravi, alias Raviprakash, a former branch manager of Canara Bank, have been accused of cheating nationalised banks and other institutions of Rs. 10.73 crores using fake demand drafts and cheques. They would have cheated one of the banks of another Rs. 6.33 crores, but the alert officials scuttled their plan. The City police arrested Ravi on Tuesday, but the other accused is at large.

A police team, including the Assistant Commissioner of Police, Mr. G.A.Bawa, and Mr. Siddaramaiah, inspector, arrested Ravi, who has been living in Koramangala.

The City police responded to the request of the governments of Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Goa in nabbing Ravi, following a three-month-long investigation. The police team also recovered a car, a mobile phone, a colour TV and cassettes, a computer and a DTP printer, fake demand drafts and cheques, the dyes used for fabricating them, and fake rubber seals of nationalised banks in Karnataka and other States.

The investigation revealed that Ravi, who had joined Canara Bank's Hebbala branch in Kodagu District, was later promoted to the post of manager. He had also served as assistant manager in its foreign exchange counter on Mahatma Gandhi Road in the City. After resigning from the bank, he launched the S.A.Financial Services, dealing in foreign exchange. He formed a group and started fabricating demand drafts and cheques, and crediting them in fake bank accounts.

According to Mr. Bava, the two accused used to purchase new cars and gold ornaments from various establishments by presenting fake demand drafts. They are allegedly involved in 13 bank fraud cases in the City and one in Bangarpet in Kolar District. They had also defrauded Canara Bank's Mudalpatti branch in Namakkal in Tamil Nadu of Rs. 5.8 crores. The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in Chennai has been investigating the case.

They have been involved in four cases each in Hyderabad and Goa. The other cases of cheating of banks have been registered in City Market, Upparpet, Seshadripuram, Ashoknagar, Viveknagar, Koramangala, Commercial Street, High Grounds, R.M.C Yard, and Siddapura police station limits in the City, Narayanaguda police station limits in Andhra Pradesh, Abid Road police station limits in Hyderabad in that State, where they had presented demand drafts for purchasing jewellery, Poorvarim and Vasco police station limits in Goa, and New Delhi, where they allegedly stole demand drafts.

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