3 MORE PNB OFFICIALS HELD IN FRAUD CASE
Officials are accused of overlooking ‘illegal acts’ committed by key accused in the ₹11,400crore fraud case
NEW DELHI: The CBI on Monday arrested three more officials of the Punjab National Bank (PNB) in connection with its probe into the alleged ₹11,400-crore fraud case involving businessman Nirav Modi and his maternal uncle, Mehul Choksi.
“The CBI has arrested Bechhu Tiwari, chief manager of the bank’s forex department; Yashwant Joshi, scale two manager in the same department; and Praful Sawant, scale one officer in the export department,” said an agency spokesperson.
Three people – retired deputy manager Gokulnath Shetty, suspended single window operator Manoj Kharat and Nirav Modi’s alleged accountant Hemant Bhatt – were held earlier.
The spokesperson said Tiwari was responsible for supervising the work of Shetty and his manager to ensure the entry of authorised SWIFT messages only from the PNB’s core banking system (CBS). The official seemed to have full knowledge of the retired deputy manager’s activities, he added. SWIFT is a messaging system used for inter-bank dealings.
The spokesperson said Joshi was also responsible for supervising Shetty, and ensuring that SWIFT and CBS entries were filed on a daily basis. “It is alleged that Joshi did not take any action despite having complete knowledge of Shetty’s activities either. The third person, Sawant, was responsible for checking SWIFT messages every day ,” he added.
The CBI is conducting raids on their residences located in Navi Mumbai, Andheri and Dombivili, besides scrutinising travel records of the billionaire jewellery designer.
Earlier in the day, the agency questioned Modi’s personal assistant and travel desk in-charge regarding his whereabouts. “The CBI is trying to find out where Modi has been since he left the country on Jan 1,” a person familiar with the matter said.
The CBI has sought Interpol’s assistance in tracking Modi’s whereabouts. Five more aides of Modi were also examined on Monday. The agency spokesperson said the PNB’s Brady House branch, where the scam took place, was briefly sealed earlier in the day to prevent tampering.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED), meanwhile, is looking into the money-laundering aspect of the probe. The agency searched Modi’s Mumbai residence, besides 38 other locations . It also seized fresh assets worth ₹22 crore.