Rs 1.5 lakh bank theft discovered after 16 days

Upon finding cash missing, bank wastes some more time in making enquiries with customers rather than going through CCTV footage

Upon finding cash missing, bank wastes some more time in making enquiries with customers rather than going through CCTV footage

Four men managed to steal Rs 1.5 lakh from the cashier box of a Syndicate Bank branch in the city without the staff, the security guard or the customers having a clue about it.

That's not all. It took 16 days for the staff at the Sheshadripuram branch of the bank to discover that the cash was missing, after which they filed a complaint with the police.

The November 6 incident came to light on November 21, when the staff was counting cash before depositing it in the bank chest.

The matter was reported to the bank manager, who asked the staff to enquire about the missing cash with regular customers.

The police said initially the bank assumed that customers must have deposited Rs 1.5 lakh less than intended and the cashier must have overlooked it.

Finally, CCTV help

It was only after the bank staff got nowhere with their enquiries that Geetha Mohan, the bank manager, summoned the technicians to ask for the CCTV footage, said the police.

In her complaint to the Sheshadripuram police, Mohan said a gang of four men diverted the attention of the cashier and took away the cash. The footage from all six cameras installed in the bank was handed over to the police.

The Sheshadripuram police have taken down a case of theft.

"We have circulated the photos of the suspects and sent them to the crime record bureau for identification," said a police officer. "It is a gang that is operating in and around the city for quite some time."

A previous case
In April, a theft of Rs 15.23 lakh occurred at the Sudham Nagar branch of the State Bank of India. The Kalasiplaya police, who are investigating the case, are still clueless on who did it but suspect an inside job.
u00a0
In the incident, cashier Govinda had placed a suitcase full of money at the cabin and gone out of his cabin to attend to some customers. The suitcase was handed over to Govinda by another employee, Murthy, after taking out the cash from the safe locker.

When Govinda returned, he found the suitcase gone, said the Kalasipalya police. Assistant Manager Madhav Murthy said in his complaint that Rs 15,23,300 was the amount missing.