On ED Twitter.

ED attaches Rs 91.3 Cr in foreign currency in Singapore bank accounts in City Limouzine case. Total attachment in the case now is Rs 385 Cr.


7:46 AM - 16 Sep 2016

एटीएम ठगों ने हर तरफ अपना जाल बिछा रखा है। वे अलग-अलग तरीकों से आपको अपने जाल में फांसते हैं। देश के किसी कोने में बैठा ठग आपको अपनी बातों के जाल में फंसाकर आपके एटीएम के 16 डिजिट का नम्बर जान लेता है और रुपये उड़ा लेता है। जमशेदपुर में तो एटीएम फ्रॉड के हर महीने आठ मामले दर्ज हो रहे हैं।

इन सात तरीकों को जान लीजिए तो आप एटीएम ठगों के जाल में फंसने से बच सकते हैं - 1. ठग कॉल कर खुद को बैंक का अधिकारी बताते हुए कहेगा आपके एटीएम कार्ड का आज ही नवीकरण करना है। ऐसा नहीं करने पर एटीएम कार्ड बंद हो जाएगा। यह कहकर आपसे आपके एटीएम का पूरा विवरण ले लेगा। आपको उसे जानकारी नहीं देनी है। अपने बैंक से सीधे संपर्क करें।

2. कॉलर आपके पड़ोसी को फोन कर उनके बंद एटीएम को खोलने के लिए आपकी गारंटी लेगा। उसमें आपके एटीएम कार्ड का विवरण मांगेगा। आपके मोबाइल फोन पर वन टाइम पासवर्ड (ओटीपी) भेजकर उसका नंबर पूछेगा। उसे कोई जानकारी नहीं देनी है।

3. कॉलर बैंक के विजिलेंस सेल का अधिकारी बनकर आपके एटीएम कार्ड की क्लोनिंग होने की जानकारी देगा। आपसे एटीएम कार्ड का 16 डिजिट का नंबर पूछेगा।

4. बैंक अधिकारी बनकर कॉल करने वाला आपका नाम-पता सब बताएगा। आपके साथ पजल खेलते हुए आपको कुछ अंक देगा। उस अंक से आपके एटीएम कार्ड के 16 डिजिट के अंतिम चार अंकों से जोड़-घटाव का गणित कराएगा। उससे बचना है।

5. बैंकों ने स्पष्ट किया है कि एटीएम कार्ड के बारे में उसके 16 डिजिट के नंबर के बारे में या फिर पासवर्ड जानने के लिए उनकी तरफ से कोई भी कॉल नहीं किया जाता है। लिहाजा ऐसे किसी भी कॉल से परहेज करें।

6. एटीएम रूम में किसी भी तरह के झांसे में फांसकर आपसे कोई आपका एटीएम कार्ड मांगे तो उसे नहीं दें। आपका कार्ड बदलकर उससे रुपये निकाल लिए जायेंगे।

7. आपके एटीएम कार्ड के पीछे कार्ड वेरीफिकेशन वैल्यू कोड होता है। छोट अक्षरों में लिखे कोड की भी जानकारी कॉलर को नहीं दें।


Rogues has spread its tentacles all around the ATM. They are different ways you Fansate trap. Thugs sitting in any corner of the country of your things by repeated netting 16 digit number, your ATM Learns and takes away Rs. ATM fraud cases every month in Jamshedpur are eight.

Let me tell you these seven ways to avoid ATM thugs trap - 1. thugs calling themselves officers of the bank shall inform your ATM card is renewed today. It will stop at the ATM card. Saying it will take you a full description of your ATM. You have to give him information. Please contact your bank directly.

2. The caller calling your neighbor will guarantee you to open their shut ATM. It will seek your ATM card details. On your mobile phone, one-time password (OTP) sent to ask her number. Do not give him any information.

3. Collar bank vigilance cell will I become aware of your ATM card cloning. ATM cards will ask you 16 digit number.

4. The bank official will be calling your name, address and all. Playing puzzle with you will give you some points. At that point the last four digits of your 16 digit ATM card tepid shall mathematics. Is avoided.

5. The bank has made it clear that her 16 digit ATM card number or password to know about any of the calls is not on their side. So to avoid any call.

6. ATM room Fanskr prey somehow you do not give him your ATM card if he asks. Your card to withdraw Rs changing her will.

7. back of your ATM card is the card verification value code. Small letters that the code does not provide any information to the caller.


ATM thagon ne har taraph apana jaal bichha rakha hai. ve alag-alag tareekon se aapako apane jaal mein phaansate hain. desh ke kisee kone mein baitha thag aapako apanee baaton ke jaal mein phansaakar aapake ATM ke 16 dijit ka nambar jaan leta hai aur rupaye uda leta hai. jamashedapur mein to ATM phrod ke har maheene aath maamale darj ho rahe hain.

En saat tareekon ko jaan leejie to aap ATM thagon ke jaal mein phansane se bach sakate hain -

1. thag kol kar khud ko bank ka adhikaaree bataate hue kahega aapake ATM card ka aaj hee naveekaran karana hai. aisa nahin karane par ATM card band ho jaega. yah kahakar aapase aapake ATM ka poora vivaran le lega. aapako use jaanakaaree nahin denee hai. apane bank se seedhe sampark karen.

2. kolar aapake padosee ko phon kar unake band ATM ko kholane ke lie aapakee gaarantee lega. usamen aapake ATM card ka vivaran maangega. aapake mobail phon par van taim paasavard (oteepee) bhejakar usaka nambar poochhega. use koee jaanakaaree nahin denee hai.

3. kolar bank ke vijilens sel ka adhikaaree banakar aapake ATM card kee kloning hone kee jaanakaaree dega. aapase ATM card ka 16 dijit ka nambar poochhega.

4. bank adhikaaree banakar kol karane vaala aapaka naam-pata sab bataega. aapake saath pajal khelate hue aapako kuchh ank dega. us ank se aapake ATM card ke 16 dijit ke antim chaar ankon se jod-ghataav ka ganit karaega. usase bachana hai.

5. bankon ne spasht kiya hai ki ATM card ke baare mein usake 16 dijit ke nambar ke baare mein ya phir paasavard jaanane ke lie unakee taraph se koee bhee kol nahin kiya jaata hai. lihaaja aise kisee bhee kol se parahej karen.

6. ATM room mein kisee bhee tarah ke jhaanse mein phaansakar aapase koee aapaka ATM card maange to use nahin den. aapaka card badalakar usase rupaye nikaal lie jaayenge.

April 27, 2015 8:23 PM

Hi, I have received some information from our very active and aggressive activist Advocate Mr Zulfiqar Sir,  As follows, "Dear sir Admission of claims Notices are coming to Investors and number of investors of different cities have received the same. It is calculation made by official liquidator Chartered accountants and approved by Court. If anybody have any objection ,with regard to their admission of claim Notice, within 21 days from receipt of notice, he or she can approach in person hearing official liquidator High Court of Bombay and hope maximum 3 to 4 months all claimants should receive admission notice of their claims."
Please do share whence any of group member receive any type of notice related with City Limouzines, Thank you, Stay united.

Published: 28th May 2015 06:01 AM



CHENNAI: In August 2009, N Baskar walked into a private bank and asked for
a personal loan. The reason? To invest in what seemed a no-loss
proposition. A close friend of his had referred him to a company called
City Limouzines, promising a return of 48 per cent on investment.


Baskar was wowed, took a high interest personal loan and put in Rs 1.5
lakh. “It was the worst mistake of my life,” he told Express on Wednesday,
six years later. The company shut down on August 15, 2009 and Baskar hasn’t
yet seen a paisa of his hard earned and borrowed cash.

Baskar is not the only one hoodwinked by the masterminds behind what has
come to be known as the City Group Scam. Even as the Swiss Federal Gazette
has made public the names of Sayed Mohamed Masood, who helmed the ‘City
Group’, and his wife as account holders in Swiss Banks, thousands of
people, including over 35,000 who haven filed claims with the Tamil Nadu
Economic Offices Wing, languish — some even now in debt and severely
depreciated life savings.

“I broke some deposits made for my son to make the investment in the
company,” narrated a bitter Zulfiqar Ali Khan, advocate and investor, who
has represented over 50 fellow investors’ claims over the past few years.

Not only did Khan represent other investors, but he and a few other
advocates also formed the South Chennai City Group Investors’ Welfare
Association. “Not many have come forward to join though. Even as several
routinely come to every hearing on the case to hope for their money back,”
he pointed out.

Accounts of investors in Chennai point to an insidious cycle of referrals,
big investments and good returns, always on time and as promised, as the
number of investors in the immense Ponzi Scheme grew.

“But once the company shut down and came under the eye of the authorities,
it was the end,” said K Rajendra Prasad. Prasad’s and Khan’s occupations
and incomes show that it wasn’t only the less-informed who had been lured
by the promise of a 48% return on any investment — Prasad is a Central
government employee.

“I had made several investments before the final one. I always got my EMI
checks on time and without trouble. Which is why for the final investment,
my biggest, I took personal and jewel loans, not to mention a property
mortgage. It wasn’t the best decision,” he said.

Prasad is still owed around Rs 10 lakh. The promise which brought in such
investments was a 48 per cent return, disbursed in monthly equal
installments over five years. Plus a bumper final payment at the end.

The aftermath of the closure, investigation, arrest and adjudication
process has been nightmarish for some. Baskar, a BPO employee had such
trouble repaying his personal loan that he had to borrow from friends and
family, finally even resorting to selling his bike to make the closing
payment. Prasad had similar trouble, lasting years.

For investors, at least those who filed claims though, there seems the
ordeal may be coming to an end. Around Rs 180 crore has been sent to the
official liquidator and claims are being accepted in Mumbai.

“We think the settlements will start coming in 5 or 6 months. The order is
to give an interest of 24 per cent on investment from 2009 to when the
liquidation order was made. Different for different City Group companies,”
said Khan.

Only a fraction though have filed claims. Some very big investors have not
come forward, says Khan.

Those who have not can still file claims, even though the last date has
gotten over. “We’ll help them out,” said Khan. Perhaps there could finally
be some light at the end of a very long and dark tunnel.

Published: 03rd June 2015 06:00 AM



NEW DELHI: Switzerland’s Federal Tax Administration (FTA) on Tuesday
disclosed that it had shared with New Delhi the details of the foreign
assets of Indian nationals Sayed Mohammed Masood and Chand Kauser Masood in
connection with a tax-evasion probe in India. A notice to Masood and Kauser
was served by the FTA on April 21, asking them to file an appeal within 30
days before the Federal Administrative Court if they didn’t want the
details shared with Indian authorities.

The FTA has shared the details related to Wharf Ltd, a company with links
to Masood and Kauser and based in tax haven Bahamas.

“The Federal Tax Administration provides [... ] concerning mutual
assistance Sayed Mohammed Masood, born on 24 October 1956 Indian national.
The Federal Tax Administration [ ... ] , in which the Wharf Limited,
founded on 5 May 2006, [ ... ], Bahamas, appears: [ ... ],” the
notification said.

Masood, chief of the investment scheme City Limouzines, is already being
investigated by various agencies, including the Enforcement Directorate
(ED), for alleged money laundering. In 2012 the ED attached two Swiss
accounts of Masood and his business firms under the Prevention of Money
Laundering Act (PMLA). He is under probe for floating ponzi schemes and
cheating thousands of investors.

Although the account holder can appeal within 30 days of the “final
Instructions”, the information related to the assets and Masood’s company
will help the Indian investigators.

“The notice of appeal must contain the request, the reasons with reference
to the evidence and the signature of the complainant or their
representatives,” the FTA said.

Published: 01st July 2015 03:43 AM




CHENNAI: Hopes increased for thousands of investors who were duped in the
immense Ponzi scam six years ago, that came to be known as the ‘City Group
Scam’, routed through several companies such as City Limouzines and City
Realcomm, headed by promoters Sayed Md Masood and his wife.

In the last two weeks, the Official Liquidator’s (OL) office has mailed out
several admission notices for investors’ claims after Rs 150 crore was
seized by the Enforcement Directorate in Singapore on Monday.

“This is a good thing and a huge bonus to investors like us, who have been
wondering whether we will get any of our money back,” confessed Advocate
Zulfiqar Ali Khan, who coordinated the efforts of investors to get the
money back.

Over 35,000 investors have filed claims in Tamil Nadu alone.

“I have finally received my admission notice from the OL in Mumbai, after
months of waiting. I hope this will get resolved in half a year,” said an
investor who preferred anonymity.

Zulfiqar Ali Khan confirmed that the process of getting the money back had
accelerated.

“The last few weeks several admission notices to claims were mailed. Nearly
65 per cent of the investors who submitted claim forms have got their
admission notices. This has raised up hopes and expectations.

“While I think six months is too ambitious for the process to be completed,
I am confident that it will be distributed within a year,” said Khan, who
is also the president, South Chennai City Group Investors’ Welfare
Association.

The Rs 150 crore that has been attached and included in the kitty for
liquidation “will be handed over to the Official Liquidator for the City
Group eventually. It might take around six months,” said the source.

A number of investors had not yet submitted claims.

“For both (groups of) people who have not submitted claims and for those
who have, the Rs 150 crore seized will almost double the money that will be
available for distribution.

“If people have not yet submitted claims, they can approach us and we will
help them out,” said Khan.

The scam left thousands of investors high and dry.

One of the companies, City Limouzines, had promised a return of 48 per cent
on investment.

Fast track trial of City Limouzines chief: ED to SC

The latest move by the agency comes after the Singapore government has said that it will repatriate the ill gotten gains of about Rs 280 crore lying in the foreign accounts of Masood only after his final conviction.

Recd fraud call from Kanishka singh saying calling behalf of Kotak mahindra bank regarding cashback of earned points asking all credit card details called from +91 9953118935 told she was calling from Noida sector 8

ABC Cotspin promoters who cheated SBI, BoB of Rs 770 crore are chilling out in LA.

Five months after the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) filed a first information report (FIR) against Mumbai-based textile export firm ABC Cotspin Private Ltd, and its promoters Ashish B Jobanputra and his wife, Preeti Jobanputra, in the Rs 770-crore bill discounting scam involving State Bank of India (SBI) and Bank of Baroda (BoB), the agency had done little to nab them.

While the tax authorities and the Maharashtra government recovery department have been taking steps to ring-fence the fraudsters, the CBI seems to be going slow.

Last month, the CBI issued a red-corner notice (RCN). After that, the agency says it has no idea where the fraudsters are hiding. Such notices, equivalent to international arrest warrants, allow investigative agencies to arrest fraudsters from other countries.

A dna investigation reveals that the couple are buying time in Los Angeles. They are readying plans to restart their cotton export business in India with some trusted men, still employed with them in the country. Close business associates of the company told dna: "Next month, they are also inaugurating a multi-store business in the US."

A detailed e-mail to the CBI last week enquiring about the progress of the case and why their properties are not attached did not evince a reply. Ashish Jobanputra also did not respond to an email questionnaire.

Two company directors, Ashiwin Patel and Bhavesh Takker, are in Mumbai but no action has been initiated against them either. Though the duo has vast landed properties in Mumbai and Gujarat, the CBI has not attached any so far.

A CBI spokesperson said, "We are yet to get information from the said department. There are many procedures before arresting anyone."

Interestingly, Ashish continues to enjoy the membership of Cotton Exchange at Cotton Green in Mumbai, where he has three premises that he can possess as long as he is a member. No plans are afoot to strip his membership or to vacate him from the premises.

The Gujarat commercial tax department and the Maharashtra recovery department are the only agencies that have so far initiated the most stringent action against Jobanputras. They have slapped a provisional attachment notice on the sprawling head office of ABC Cotspin on the 13th floor of Regent Chambers at Nariman Point in Mumbai, and prevented the company from vacating or selling the premise.

The promoters have filed a case against the recovery department to lift the provisional attachment in the government tribunal court.

When dna visited the company's Nariman Point office, a few plush swivel chairs were getting bubble-packed and left on the floor. Five employees were roaming around the office. No one divulged their names nor was willing to share any information. One employee said, "The company is not shut. We are in huge losses."

An official from the Maharashtra government recovery cell told dna that they were packing off and trying to shift the office out.

"We wrote a letter to the society not to let them take out any material, except paper, and not to allow any sale or transfer of property. We are now fighting a legal case after the company filed a case against the provisional attachment," said the official.

The Maharashtra recovery department has swung into action on a request from the Gujarat state commercial tax department, which detected a tax fraud of Rs 40 crore. According to tax authorities, ABC Cotspin undertook fake transactions with Sapna Sales and Max Impex and Arya Cotton of Kalupur in Gujarat.

These traders forged bills and helped the company claim fake refunds. About 4-5 premises of the company in CG road, Relief Road, Kalupur and Botad were searched by I-T officials. As many as four laptops and seven hard disks were seized by officials during the search in November last year.

An employee of ABC Cotspin told dna, "The company was forced to shut down after it suffered huge losses."

BoB, which lost over Rs 300 crore in the fraud, is in the process of auctioning Jobanputra's posh apartment at Imperial Towers in Mumbai's tony suburb of Tardeo. Reliance Commercial Finance, a Reliance group company that financed five luxury cars of the couple, has already towed away two of their cars for non-servicing of debt.

A Reliance spokesperson said: "The promoters are negotiating a settlement. Ashish has said he is sitting on huge export losses in China."

A senior BoB official said: "We sent an official to China to see if the company's godowns have stock, and discovered that it was empty. We have suspended three officers, and the CBI probe may be extended to them."

ABC Cotspin fraudulently presented over 400 bills of lading, manufactured internally at different points in 2014-15 to both SBI and BoB. The firm discounted bills aggregating Rs 770 crore without attaching shipping bills as evidence of export.

A bill-discounting transaction occurs when a bank buys the bill before it is due and credits the amount (of course, after deducting certain discounting charge) to the customer's account. Typically, sellers and exporters use this facility to obtain finance from banks. A fraud is perpetrated when a buyer and seller, acting in connivance, win the bank's confidence by carrying out a string of regular transactions where the buyer agrees to honour the payment.

In this case, bogus bills were submitted showing that cotton bales were loaded on to ships to be exported to China and Hong Kong with forged customs department seal, when no exports had taken place. Some bank branches ended up discounting bills against which the underlying trade transactions were non-existent.

Bill of lading is a negotiable instrument issued by the directorate general of shipping. Typically, when a bill of lading is submitted to the bank, it discounts some part of the future receivable and disburses the entire money to the exporter for his working capital needs.

The accused, Anita Kulkarni, and her accomplice were arrested from Kharghar in March

NAVI MUMBAI: Days after Snapdeal filed a case against a 49-year-old conwoman for allegedly cheating it of three iPhones worth Rs 1.39 lakh, Flipkart registered an FIR against her at the Kharghar police station. The accused, Anita Kulkarni, and her accomplice were arrested from Kharghar in March.

"Dombivli resident Anita Kulkarni (49) and Naupada resident Mobin Mahafule (24) had rented a flat in Kharghar's Eden Garden Sector-5 using using the names Anita and Siddharth Chabra. The duo, who claimed to be mother and son, would book three iPhones online with cash-on-delivery option. When the courier boy would be busy counting the Rs 1.39 lakh cash handed over by Kulkarni, Mahafule would swap the parcel with empty iPhone boxes stuffed with salt packets and then return it claiming that the iPhones were not of the same colour as they had ordered," said assistant police inspector Krishna Kokani.

As courier boys are not allowed to open parcels, it would be returned to the e-tailer company. When Snapdeal found that the IMEI numbers on the returned iPhone boxes were different from those on the invoice and the complaints were from the same address in Kharghar, it registered a complaint through its courier agency. In March, the crime branch central unit team raided the flat, seized 17 iPhones worth Rs 8.16 lakh and empty iPhone boxes and salt packets and arrested Kulkarni and Mahafule.

The police are yet to ascertain the role of Kulkarni's 17-year-old son in the crime. The teenager would allegedly buy empty iPhone boxes for Rs 30-50 a piece from the streets near Heera Panna in Tardeo and near Regal cinema in south Mumbai, said a police officer.

'Mom-son' duo swaps pricey iPhones with dummy models, returns them to e-tailers
Cops Raid Kharghar Flat, Find 17 Phones Worth Total Rs 8 Lakh

Navi Mumbai: A 49-year-old woman and a youth, who posed as mother and son, have been arrested for allegedly cheating several e-tailer firms, including Snapdeal, of expensive iPhones.

"After Snapdeal lodged a complaint against the 'mother-son' duo, crime branch sleuths raided their Kharghar flat and seized 17 iPhones worth a total Rs 8.16 lakh. We have urged other e-tailers to come forward and register complaints against them," said Navi Mumbai deputy commissioner of Police (crime) Dilip Sawant.

Crime branch central unit officials said that Dombivli resident Anita Shirish Kulkarni (49) and Naupada resident Mobin Yusuf Mahafule (24) had rented a flat in Kharghar's Eden Garden Sector-5 using forged documents using the names Anita and Siddharth Chabra. Explaining the modus operandi, the police said that the duo would book iPhones online with cash-on-delivery option. The police said that when the parcel would arrive at their rented residence, Kulkarni would engage the delivery boy in a conversation, while the youth would take the parcel inside, swap it with a similar box containing a dummy iPhone model, and return the "parcel" to the delivery boy complaining that it's a defective piece.

"Kulkarni and Mahafule have several similar cheating cases registered against them in Thane, Pune and Ahmedabad where they used the same modus operandi," said Sawant.

"The duo had purchased three iPhones from Snapdeal with cash-on-delivery option. When the package was delivered to their rented apartment in Kharghar, they swapped the delivered parcel with a similar box containing a dummy models and returned it to the delivery boy claiming they were defective pieces," said Navi Mumbai police commissioner Prabhat Ranjan.

"Sensing something was amiss, Snapdeal lodged a complaint with the crime branch department. An investigation revealed that Kulkarni and Mahafule had used fake identities to rent the flat as mother and son and had cheated other e-tailers using the same modus operandi." The Kharghar police have booked them for cheating and forgery under IPC sections 420, 465,468, 469, 471 and 34.

ASHDOD, Israel (AP) Gilbert Chikli was rolling in money, stolen from some of the world's biggest corporations. His targets: Accenture. Disney. American Express. In less than two years, he made off with at least 6.1 million euros from France alone.

But he had a problem. He couldn't spend the money. A tangle of banking rules designed to stop con men like him stood between Chikli and his cash. He needed to find a weak link in the global financial system, a place to make his stolen money appear legitimate.

He found it in China.

"China has become a universal, international gateway for all manner of scams," he said in an interview with The Associated Press. "Because China today is a world power, because it doesn't care about neighboring countries, and because, overall, China is flipping off other countries in a big way."

A visionary con man, Chikli realized early on — around 2000, the year before China joined the World Trade Organization — the potential that lay in the shadows of China's rise, its entrenched corruption and informal banking channels that date back over 1,000 years. He told the AP he laundered 90 percent of his money through China and Hong Kong, slipping it into the region's great tides of legitimate trade and finance.

Today, he is in good company.

Criminals around the world have discovered that a good way to liberate their dirty money is to send it to China, which is emerging as an international hub for money laundering, an AP investigation has found. Gangs from Israel and Spain, North African cannabis dealers and cartels from Mexico and Colombia are among those using China as a haven where they can safely hide money, clean it, and pump it back into the global financial system, according to police officials, European and US court records and intelligence documents reviewed by the AP.

China's foreign ministry, central bank and police all refused repeated requests for comment.

Chikli is widely credited in France with inventing a con that has inspired a generation of copycats. Chikli's scam, called the fake president or fake CEO scam, has cost companies around the world $1.8 billion in just over two years, according to the FBI. And the damages are rising fast.

Security cameras poke over the high wooden fence that encircles Chikli's property, a sleek, three-story home in Ashdod, a port city on the Mediterranean. Beyond that, a swing set, pink-and-purple tricycle and orange ball jumble his lawn. And then there is Chikli himself, tan and smiling at his massive front door. He was sentenced in absentia to seven years in prison by a French court last year and remains a wanted man, but here in Israel, he lives openly and talked about his criminal exploits with pride during four hours of interviews with the AP.

"It's the power of persuasion," he said. "It's not easy to turn the head of a bank president."

Dirty money has long washed through China, but has been viewed primarily as a domestic problem. Now, mounting evidence shows that non-Chinese criminals are learning to tap entrenched, sophisticated Chinese systems to move money illegally — largely beyond the reach of Western law enforcement.

China's underground financial systems are of rising concern to top policymakers there, who are struggling to stem massive capital flight as the economy slows. Despite strict currency controls, a record net $711 billion gushed out of China last year, not counting foreign direct investment, according to estimates by Fitch Ratings.

A lot of that money leaks out illegally. Corporations undervalue exports or overvalue imports to move capital abroad, for example. Money changers and underground banks routinely help mainland Chinese slip cash out of the country in excess of the official $50,000-a-year limit. Global Financial Integrity, a Washington-DC non-profit, ranks China as the world's largest exporter of illicit money.

"Wherever I go in the world, there is a growing Chinese presence," said John Cassara, a former financial intelligence agent at the U.S. Treasury Department. "It's only natural that the Chinese are going to bring their financial systems with them — their above-board financial systems and their underground systems."

"It's completely off the radar screen," Cassara said. "No one knows about it."

But Chikli knew.

"Gilbert Chikli knows that China is a springboard to be able to bounce money off of," said the con man, who often spoke of himself in the third person. "It's not a secret. The whole world knows that China is a hub for sending and receiving money."

THE 'FAKE CEO SCAM'

The first con, the one that made Chikli realize he had "the gift," began in Paris on the afternoon of July 25, 2005, with a phone call.

When Madame G., who ran a branch of La Banque Postale, picked up the phone, a man with a sure, powerful voice said he was the bank's CEO and needed her help on a top-secret terrorism investigation, French court documents show. He dropped details about past meetings that left Madame G., whose name cannot be published due to French privacy laws, convinced of his identity. The man told her a secret agent named Paul would be in touch.

Following instructions, Madame G. bought a burner phone to communicate with Paul. Over the next three days, he hammered her with 43 calls.

Some of the bank's clients, Paul explained, were suspected of running money for terrorists. Less than three weeks earlier, four suicide bombers linked to Al Qaida blew themselves up in central London, killing 52 people and injuring 700 more. Photographs of bloody, burned commuters staggering from the London Underground were everywhere.

Paul told Madame G. he needed the names of the bank's biggest clients. He wanted her to bring him cash. He would scan the bills to see if they were stolen, then they'd meet at a bistro on Rue de la Paix and he'd return the money. She was a key player in a major anti-terrorism operation.

He was counting on her.

On July 28, Madame G. stuffed 358,000 euros ($398,000) in a bag and took a taxi to a cafe in eastern Paris. She walked into a stall in the restroom. She heard a woman say the secret password. Madame G. passed the cash-filled bag under the stall. Mission accomplished.

Then she went to the bistro on Rue de la Paix and waited on the terrace. But where was Paul?

After she went to the police, investigators eventually traced the calls to Chikli. Paul was, in Chikli's telling, just one of his many stage names. The woman who took the cash in the bathroom was Chikli's mistress. Chikli's brother, Simon, drove the getaway car, according to French court documents.

Back then, it was a game to Chikli. But if he wanted to get more money than would fit in a sack, he had to take his criminal ambitions global.

Banks are supposed to know their customers — not just their identities, but also where their money comes from. To scale up his fraud, Chikli needed a way around international anti-money laundering norms.

He had a number of options for cleaning his cash. Chikli called HSBC and tricked an employee into sending money to one of his Hong Kong front companies, which bounced it to a guy in Fujian province, who told investigators that he often used his bank account to launder money for Israelis, in exchange for a 5 percent commission. Police traced tens of thousands in transfers from Chikli front companies to Bank of China accounts.

The Bank of China refused to comment.

But Chikli's preferred method, which he described for the first time in detail to the AP, was to use import-export schemes.

Such trade-based money laundering is a growing concern for US authorities. Mexican and Colombian drug cartels laundered more than $5 billion in drug proceeds in part by exporting counterfeit goods from China, according to a US Justice Department indictment against three Colombians based in Guangzhou.

Chikli ordered companies to send money to bank accounts around the world — often, he said, in Eastern Europe. Then, he'd bounce the funds to Hong Kong and China and arrange for them to be withdrawn in cash. The money was used to purchase merchandise — shoes, gold, steel, textiles — in China. For a commission, the Chinese vendor then issued highly inflated receipts to Chikli's shell companies, creating a "legal" paper trail. Typically, Chikli said, he'd actually buy some goods, while forwarding most of his cash to another account he controlled. He might purchase, say, 20 tons of steel, but bribe the vendor to give him a receipt for 100 tons.

Chikli sold the goods and then sent the money to Israel, where false invoices made the entire sum look like legitimate trading profits, he said.

"Everything is clean," he said. "Give me the documents and everything is fine."

THE WASHING MACHINE

Chikli used to run a clothing company in Sentier, a late 18th-century Paris neighborhood built atop a medieval slum. Sentier was once a neighborhood for strivers _ first Jews from Eastern Europe and North Africa, then Chinese who moved into the wholesale textile trade. Chikli forged the idea for his scam on these streets.

The tools of his trade are simple: telephones. Chikli called the company that runs Disneyland Paris, pretending to be the CEO. He called French technology conglomerate Thomson SA and persuaded an employee to transfer millions to accounts in Russia, Switzerland and England. He called Barclays, Galeries Lafayette, American Express.

Eventually, French authorities caught up with him and put him on trial for dozens of attempted frauds, many thwarted only at the last moment. In 2009, Chikli posted 30,000 euros ($33,500) bail. His passport was confiscated and he was ordered to remain in France to stand trial. Instead, he chartered a private plane, he claims, and fled to Israel.

A French court found him guilty last May of defrauding La Banque Postale, LCL bank and HSBC, along with Thomson and Accenture, out of 6.1 million euros, and attempting to extract over 70 million euros from at least 33 others. But by then, he was living by the sea in Ashdod.

It was, perhaps, his most masterful con of all.

Israeli authorities would not say whether France had made a formal request for Chikli's extradition. French judicial officials have not responded to repeated requests for clarification on the status of any extradition request related to Chikli. Israel and France share no bilateral extradition treaty, but Israel has surrendered French citizens in some cases.

Israeli authorities also declined to explain why Chikli is able to live freely in Israel. A spokesman for the state attorney's office, Noam Sharvit, would only say that Israeli law enforcement is "doing all they can to fight and contain these criminal phenomena."

Law enforcement has not globalized as fast as crime, and the legal firewall that surrounds China has added to its appeal as a money-laundering hub.

Chinese authorities generally have done little to help Western companies defrauded in Chikli-style scams recover their money, according to European intelligence documents reviewed by the AP.

The US state department, in a report this month, reproached China for lackluster performance on money-laundering investigations.

"China has not cooperated sufficiently on financial investigations and does not provide adequate responses to requests for financial investigation information," the State Department wrote.

Jay Bienkowski, an FBI supervisory special agent in Washington who has retired since speaking to the AP, said extradition is crucial for apprehending criminals across borders. But China and the U.S. do not have an extradition treaty.

Europol, the European Union law enforcement agency, has no cooperation agreement with China.

"For us it's a blind spot," said Igor Angelini, Europol's head of financial intelligence.

'MAYBE IT WAS GOD'

Chikli insists he no longer runs fake CEO scams. But a new generation of fraudsters is copying his technique. Using information gleaned from social media and hacking, they impersonate top executives and convince employees to route money to accounts they control, ostensibly to do business deals or pay suppliers.

The FBI said it received 13,500 complaints from fake CEO scam victims around the world — a rise of 270 percent last year.

"It's a significant scam. Big dollars, and relatively recent," said Bienkowski. "It's scary."

The frauds hinge on delicate detail: A faked email ending in .co instead of .com. A name off by a single letter. The pressure is always relentless. A critical deal must be executed immediately, in total secrecy. A new supplier urgently needs payment.

The FBI traced fake CEO scam transfers to over 70 different countries. "At the very top of that list is Hong Kong and China," Bienkowski said.

Some of the networks now running fake CEO scams are collaborating with Chinese migrants in Europe to launder their money, according to European intelligence documents reviewed by the AP.

"Non-Chinese criminal groups committing CEO frauds are sending money to China because Chinese criminal groups in Europe are giving them cash," Angelini told the AP. "The scale of this phenomenon is quite substantial."

Police believe Chinese migrants and Israeli con men first learned to work together in Chikli's old neighborhood, Sentier, forging a system for laundering money so elegant that today some migrants consider it "the fastest and most secure and most reliable method for Chinese merchants to transfer their funds to China," according to European intelligence documents.

The methods they've devised are a variation of the ancient Chinese system of fei qian (FAY ch'ien), or "flying money."

Chinese immigrants first give their cash to a trusted member of the local Chinese community in France, Italy, Spain, Belgium or Germany and indicate where their money should be remitted. That Chinese intermediary — the bagman — provides the Israeli contacts with the relevant bank account information. The Israelis then direct their stolen money to those accounts in China. Once the Chinese confirm the money has landed in the correct account, the bagman hands over their cash, in euros, to the Israelis.

The Israelis get euros in Europe, the Chinese get yuan in China. "It works like an offsetting operation between (the) Chinese community and crooks in Israel," according to the intelligence documents, which note that the Israelis usually charge a 2.5% fee.

France's financial crimes squad in June busted a similar money transfer network in a Chinese wholesale district in Aubervilliers, in the suburbs of Paris, where Chinese merchants are accused of laundering money for North African drug dealers.

While Chikli's copycats may have tapped into flying money networks, Chikli said he never used them himself. He claimed that many of the people running scams today are French Jews who have fled anti-Semitism in France and use the con to rebuild their lives in Israel.

"If it can help these families who have lost everything in France," he said, "then all the better. "Maybe it was God that gave me this idea."

'THANK YOU FOR CALLING'

At 50, Chikli's even, chiseled face is beginning to show signs of age. He insists his intention was never to harm people, but to take revenge on a financial system that lets the rich steal with impunity. He saw who wielded real power in the world: Corporations and the people that run them. And if the son of a poor Tunisian car mechanic could not be a CEO, he could at least pretend to be one.

"I understood that the bankers were never convicted," he said. "If the bankers were never convicted, then I needed to indirectly become an official banker."

As a scrappy 8-year-old, Chikli stole notebooks from school and resold them to his classmates. He later got into credit card fraud. "We would go shopping," he said. "It was pretty nice because we felt like we were the owners of something, which we were not."

He studied acting. Worked in advertising and real estate. But his true vocation was persuasion.

"The brain is the world's most dangerous weapon," Chikli said. "I learned not to control but to try to make someone believe that I was right. And from that moment, all the doors opened."

Chikli calls this "the gift." With it, extracting millions from some of the world's best educated and most privileged can be a matter of a single phone call. "It can last two hours. It can last four hours. It can last five minutes," he said. "It's cinema."

Chikli maintains that his real accomplices were the employees who took his calls and complied with his demands. He threatened them. He bullied them. He seduced them.

He said he made amends to about 30 people who executed his orders — some of whom lost their jobs — by sending credit cards linked to offshore bank accounts with about 50,000 euros ($55,800) each.

"Everyone took — everyone. There was not one who refused," he claimed. He said he gave one bank manager 18 roses. "She was pulverized," he said. "If I remember correctly, we sent her 180,000 euros. That's how we wanted to apologize."

Chikli would provide no evidence to support his claims.

Today, Chikli has himself amassed many trappings of a banker's life: White baby grand piano. Glass elevator. Fendi bedboard. A glam wife 19 years his junior tattooed with "Gilbert" in curling letters next to a heart on her slim wrist.

"I have six children," he said. "I take my kids to school. I am home at 8 p.m. every night. Sincerely, I am the most simple man in the world."

This fugitive from French justice is the hero of a new film starring Julie Gayet, the companion of French President Francois Hollande. Producer Isaac Sharry met Chikli while he was awaiting trial in a French jail and paid him for the rights to his story.

The heist-thriller based on Chikli's life, "Je Compte sur Vous," is also being marketed in English.

The title: "Thank You for Calling."

Chandrapur: A retired government accountant has brought to fore a major stamp duty evasion scam in the district which has caused financial loss to the state exchequer to the tune of crores of rupees.

Complainant Haji Ali has alleged that the act of notarizing property documents such as sale deed and gift deed, which are compulsorily registrable documents with the registrar after paying stamp duty, is the new modus operandi being used in the district. Such notarizing of the documents has already caused huge losses to the exchequer as the deals have taken place by avoiding payment of stamp duty and other taxes.

Ali's complaint to the law and judiciary department has opened a Pandora's box of illegal property deals and inquiry conducted by principal district and sessions judge has found all 12 notaries authorized by state government in district to be involved in this practice. Union government too has initiated inquiry against its authorized notaries in Chandrapur for similar misconduct.

Ali claimed that it is compulsory to register the sale or gift deed of every immovable property with the registrar by paying due stamp duty. However, land developers and property dealers have found a way of evading the stamp duty and have started executing the sale deeds and gift deeds by mere notarizing the documents. It is a big scam under which agricultural lands, land in flood zone, illegally occupied lands etc are sold with hefty profits by simply notarizing the sale documents. Ali charged that every year more than 30,000 such property deals are executed through notaries and the total sum of stamp duty evasion amounted to more than Rs 300 crores in last 10 years.

"The property dealers are not only evading the duty against conversion of agriculture land into non-agriculture one, duties against approval of the layout and stamp duty against registration of property, but also income tax against every deal made through notarized property documents. There are thousands of property holders in the district who have procured plots through such illegal manner and built their homes using their precious savings. However, the fact is that they could never be the owners of the property unless their name is registered in 7/12 document of the land and mutation of property can take place only when the sale deed is registered with the government registrar," he explained.

Ali also claimed that it is the responsibility of respective tehsildar and patwari to keep watch and take action against illegal sale of agricultural land for non-agricultural use. However, they apparently overlook such deals out of vested interest. "The instance of Ballarpur Municipal Council passing a resolution allowing mutation of properties sold through notarized documents too has helped this illegal practice to flourish," he charged.

"I had prayed for action against all the notaries by way of cancellation of certificates of practice and penal action for playing fraud on the government. Even as investigation report submitted by the principal district and sessions judge had indicted all state authorized notaries here of misconduct, the government let them off by issuing mere warning to desist from notarizing the compulsorily registrable documents. The government order (dated February 29), however, clearly states that a single instance of similar nature against them in future would invite inquiry and if found guilty their license might be suspended or even cancelled," Ali said.

Prohibition on notarizing the sale deeds of property has baffled all the developers and property dealers. The government order has completely stalled the illegal sale of properties in district through notarized deals. "There are thousands of people who have been deceived to purchase the properties illegally in this fashion. Hence, government should come up with an amnesty scheme, under which such victimized property holders could regularize their properties with relaxation in the penalty," Ali demanded.

Nagpur: The Nagpur District Central Cooperative Bank (NDCCB), which finally got a banking licence again from RBI this week, will now have to deal with massive farm loan defaults, amounting to 57% of its advances. As a district central cooperative bank (DCCB), its primary role was to lend to the farmers. As the bank's condition deteriorated, many farmers preferred to hold off repayment till the outcome was clear. A poor crop in 2015 is also one of the reasons for low recovery, say sources.

Now, as the bank is set to reopen, defaults by farmers are more than the money it lost in the investment scam of 2002 that led to its downfall. The bank's lending stopped in 2014 even though its situation had begun deteriorating after 2010. The root cause was that it lost Rs150 crore due to the investment fraud in which Congress MLA Sunil Kedar is the main accused. The scam left a big hole in the bank's balance sheet.

Today, however, the bigger problem is recovering farm loans to the tune of Rs265 crore, which have turned non-performing assets (NPAs). This comes to 57% of the total advances. Unless enough recovery is made, there is a little scope for allowing withdrawals by depositors once the bank resumes work, say sources.

Sources say it was seen that once the bank's condition started deteriorating, borrowers preferred to stop repayments and wait. The bank did not grant any fresh loans in 2014-15 and 2015-16, so defaults also swelled during these years.

On March 2012, the NPAs stood at 13.5% of the total loans worth Rs389 crore. The next year, it was 14% of total loans of Rs500 crore. As on March 2014, out of total loans of Rs468 crore NPAs were Rs112 crore, touching 23%, The next year, the NPAs jumped to 57%.

Crop losses during last year can also be attributed to the low recovery. Once the government survey declares a loss of more than 50%, coercive action cannot be taken to recover the loans, sources said.

The bank management is planning to appeal to farmers to repay their loans by March 31 and get fresh credit under the new scale of finance. Each year, the amount to be lent is increased by 10% for crop loans. It is expected that farmers will turn up with money so that they get fresh loans. The NPAs will have to be reduced by at least half. Though the norms call for 15% of gross NPAs. The bank hopes to recover Rs100 crore and give fresh loans to the tune of Rs105 crore against it, a source said.

IN A NUTSHELL

NDCCB farm loan defaults stand at Rs265 crore, 57% of total advances

This is more than the amount, Rs150cr, it lost in investment fraud of 2002

2002 scam is root cause of NDCCB's fall

Borrowers preferred to stop repayments as they saw bank's condition was failing

Poor crop also considered a reason for defaults

Withdrawals can only happen after enough recovery of loans takes place

NEW DELHI: India's national security establishment has sounded the alarm over the recent theft of $81 million from Bangladesh's central bank citing the possibility of involvement of Pakistan's intelligence agency, the Inter-Services Intelligence.

A high-level government official has communicated the security establishment's concerns to the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), urging the central bank to be cautious. In February, unidentified hackers infiltrated the computer systems of Bangladesh Bank, the country's central bank, and succeeded in transferring $81 million to casinos based in Philippines, in what has been termed as one of the largest cyber heists in history.

"There are inputs that some of the places where money was transferred, or was attempted to be transferred, had some linkages with ISI," said a senior government official privy to the communication between India's security establishment and RBI.

"There can be similar attempts on the Indian banking system and that is why the advisory was issued," the official noted.

In response to a detailed email from ET, the RBI spokesperson said the central bank was taking precautions. "We have been analysing the fraud involving operations of Bangladesh Bank with Federal Reserve Bank and are taking suitable precautions both at RBI and in the banking system."

An email sent to the office of the National Security Adviser did not elicit any response at the time of filing the report.

Reports say the hackers tried to siphon off as much as $951 million from the bank's foreign currency reserve account with the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.

Alarm bells went off after a failed attempt to transfer $20 million to a bank account in Sri Lanka. According to reports, the transaction was blocked because the hackers misspelled the name of a Sri Lankan non-profit organisation — Shalika Foundation, the intended recipient.

That is when the Federal Reserve Bank of New York halted transactions worth $850 million. However, $81 million has not yet been accounted for.

After the incident came to light, the governor of Bangladesh Bank Atiur Rahman resigned earlier this month and two deputy governors were fired.

"Obviously, we do not want a similar situation in India," said the official quoted earlier.

The Philippine Senate is conducting televised hearings on the theft and the role of Manila-based Rizal Commercial Banking Corporation in the episode. The bank has admitted that $81 million was deposited in its Jupiter branch in Makati City.

According to a report filed by Philippines' Anti-Money Laundering Council, the president and general manager of casino operator Eastern Hawaii Leisure Co, Kim Wong, received 1 billion pesos ($29.5 million) from Rizal Bank through local remittance company Philrem Service Corp.

News agency Reuters on March 29 reported that Wong had deposed before the Philippine Senate denying involvement in the episode, but named two Chinese individuals from Beijing and Macau who, he said, "brought in" the $81 million.

Nagpur: A woman and her male friend have been arrested by Sitabuldi police for allegedly duping a blood bank at Ramdaspeth of Rs60 lakh. The accused have been identified as Sonali William (32), a resident of Mecosabagh, and Shailesh Dhakate (35), a resident of Yogeshwar Nagar, Dighori.

Complaint was filed by blood bank director Harish Varabhe when he came to know about the fraud a few days ago. Both the accused have confessed to committing the fraud, said police. Police said Williams was working with the blood bank for past five years while Dhakate is employed there for ten years. Varabhe had handed over the responsibility of finance to both.

The bank's rules say that they provide blood either free or take nominal charges. Police said since June 2013 to January this year, Williams and Dhakate would charge Rs5,000 from a patient and would show entry of Rs3,000 in the accounts book. In the past three years, both duped the blood bank of Rs60 lakh.

The matter came to light when other employees of the bank noticed lifestyle changes in Williams and Dhakate. Williams had started doing online shopping while Dhakate bought a bungalow and even purchased a bike. Later, Varabhe observed discrepancy in the accounts book and found both guilty after preliminary internal investigation.

New Delhi, March 21 (IANS) Two men from Africa's Cameroon and Congo have been arrested for cheating a businessman of Rs.80 lakh on the pretext of cleaning dollars painted with black ink to their original form, police said on Monday.

Kamleu Nya Alain, a 43-year-old from Cameroon, and Mwanza Nawej Yesh, a 42-year-old from Congo, were arrested on Sunday near a hotel in Civil Lines area of north Delhi.

They have been booked on charges of dishonestly receiving stolen property and cheating under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code, and also under the Foreigners Act.

Police said both the accused reside in Mehrauli area of south Delhi.

"Alain came to India in May 2015 and was staying here without a valid passport and visa. Yesh has been residing in India for the last three years without a valid passport and visa," Deputy Commissioner of Police Madhur Verma said.

He said police seized two packets containing black papers, claimed to contain $1 million each, five packets of photocopies of Indian rupees in the denomination of Rs.1,000, two bottles of chemical substances used to clean the black paper and a kit, used for demonstration to clients converting the black paper to white.

The two accused, in connivance with a man named Rozer, who also hails from an African country and is absconding so far, cheated Delhi businessman Aditya Bondwal to the tune of Rs.80 lakh on the pretext of providing him $1 million 'black dollars' by cleaning and changing it to the original form.

Police said Alain and Yesh came to India on tourist visas and met Rozer.

"They all planned to cheat Indians through this black dollar fraud. Rozer met Aditya Bondwal in Delhi during the India Africa Summit 2016. Rozer won his confidence and concocted a 'black dollar' story," the officer said.

Rozer showed interest in Bondwal's business and proposed to invest $1 million.

Rozer told Bondwal that his father Marafa Hamidou Yaya, who used to be the right-hand man of Cameroon President Paul Biya, was in jail since 2012 and all his accounts were blocked. And so he did not have any legal money.

In his next meeting, Rozer told Bondwal he has got $1 million painted with black ink.

Rozer said the money could pass through customs in only in its black form, but it can be changed into its original form by cleaning.

He took Rs.30 lakh from Bondwal in the name of cleaning the black dollars, saying a costly ink and powder were required for the purpose.

He then introduced Bondwal with both Alain and Yesh, saying they were experts in cleaning black dollars, police said.

Bondwal, who is a manufacturer of construction equipment, informed police that Alain and Yesh took Rs.50 lakh more from him.

The accused were asking more money from Bondwal, saying the quality of ink and powder was not that good, and so they needed to get better quality ink and for that purpose, they needed Rs.42 lakh more, police said.

NEW DELHI: As many as 164 ponzi companies are currently being probed by central agencies for duping customers across the country, government said today.

Cases pertaining to the 164 ponzi or chit fund companies have been assigned to the Serious Fraud Investigation Office (SFIO) for investigation, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said in Lok Sabha during Question Hour and released a list of these firms against which inquiries are in progress.

The Minister said the government has taken a number of steps to check cases of corporate frauds and protect interests of the investors of all such ponzi schemes.

The action includes incorporating 'fraud' as a substantive offence in the Companies Act, 2013, granting statutory status to the SFIO under the law, stricter norms of corporate governance and their implementation.

"Greater application of technology for early and preliminary identification of cases involving frauds through data analysis and usage of forensic tools etc., is being promoted," Jaitley said.

Several states have framed laws to deal with ponzi scheme-related cases, besides the SEBI and SFIO too have taken action against offenders, he said.

CBI probe has been initiated in a large number of cases, many people were prosecuted and arrests made while several promoters continue to be in jails, he said, adding the Enforcement Directorate has also attached properties of many promoters under PMLA.

The Minister said the central government has decided to set up a central authority under the law so that proper action can be taken against the guilty.

Pune: The cyber cell of the city police on Wednesday busted a gang of fraudsters for duping about 750 people from different parts of the state of about Rs 4.60 crore on the pretext of sanctioning loan and securing insurance policy.

The cyber crime cell team, led by inspector Sunil Pawar, arrested three persons, including an employee of a private bank. The suspects include Manish Gupta (22), Tarun Gupta (23) and bank employee Avnish Singh (36) - all from Delhi.

For the first time, the city police succeeded in busting such a racket of fraudsters. Of the 750 victims, 14 are from Pune. They have been duped of Rs 20 lakh, Pawar said.

Deepak Sakore, the deputy commissioner of police (cyber), told reporters that investigations revealed the gang members were using a name similar to a well-known private finance and insurance company to lure people.

"They were operating nine accounts - opened with fake documents - in five banks in Delhi. They used to tell people to transfer the amount to these accounts. Within 24 hours, the suspects used to withdraw the sum from these accounts from ATM kiosks," Sakore said, adding that only Rs 4 lakh could be seized from the accounts because the rest of the sum was withdrawn.

He said the police were suspecting involvement of five more suspects in the racket. "We will arrest all of them soon," Sakore said.

Modus of the gang

In November 2015, Salim Shaikh (34), a resident of Kondhwa, received a call from a person posing as a representative of a reputed financial firm. He offered help to Shaikh for obtaining personal loan.

Shaikh needed Rs 10 lakh for the surgery of his wife and immediately accepted the offer. The caller told him to first deposit some amount in a bank account as processing fee for the loan. He had told Shaikh to transfer the amount through National Electronics Fund Transfer (NEFT) or Real Time Gross Settlement (RTGS) to the given account.

Shaikh immediately transferred the amount. Thereafter, one person approached Shaikh and collected copies of documents like PAN card, electricity bill and bank statement.

After some days, the caller again demanded some money from Shaikh, claiming his documents were incomplete. Shaikh transferred the amount to the account.

In December last year, the caller again demanded money from Shaikh. This time, he pretended that the amount was needed for some government fees.

In total, Shaikh transferred Rs 1.17 lakh to the given account. When he did not get the loan, he started contacting the caller, who was unreachable. Shaikh then approached the cyber cell and lodged a complaint.

Inspector Pawar said the suspects also duped people by offering insurance policies. "While calling the people, they used a name similar to a well-known financial and insurance company. As a result, people fell prey to the tricks played by the fraudsters," he said.

Suspects misused courier companies

Sanjay Thenge, assistant police inspector of the cyber cell told TOI that the suspects used to tell their customers to transfer the amount to their accounts through NEFT or RTGS. If anyone was not familiar with these systems, the suspects used to give him the option of sending cheque to them. "For this the suspects were using courier companies in different cities other than Delhi," Thenge said.

The suspects used to contact the courier firm and to request them to receive their couriers as they were not having an office space in the city. "They used to tell the customer to send the cheque and the documents on the address of that courier firm. The suspects then used to request the courier firm to keep the documents with them and deposit the cheque in their account. They used to pay Rs 7,000 to the courier company for this service," Thenge said.

He said that the suspects had used several courier companies for their benefits. "The courier companies however, were not aware of the fraud," Thenge said.

The detection

Inspector Pawar said after receiving several complaints from people, the cyber cell started collecting information about the bank accounts of the suspects. "We found that all the nine accounts were opened with fake names," he said.

He said the police received a tip-off that Avnish, a bank employee, had helped the suspects in opening the accounts with fake documents. "Our team comprising assistant inspector Thenge and sub-inspector Pravin Swami rushed to Delhi and took Singh into custody," Pawar said.

"Singh would get Rs 15,000 to Rs 50,000 for helping the suspects in opening the accounts and alerting them about the banking loopholes," he said.

Pawar said Singh revealed the names of Manish and Tarun during the sustained interrogation. "We arrested the duo. Both of them worked in a BPO in Delhi. The duo and their other accomplices used to call people randomly and enquire if they needed loan or insurance cover," Pawar said. "We are yet to trace the kingpin of the gang," he added.

Cops to inform RBI

Sakore, the deputy commissioner of police (cyber), said the investigations revealed five major private sector and cooperative banks did not follow the KYC (know your customer) norms. "The fraudsters were taking advantage of it to dupe people," he said.

Sakore said the city police had decided to inform the RBI about it. "We will write to the RBI so that these banks start following the KYC norms," he added.

MUMBAI: The crime branch investigating the case of a Malad businesswoman, who was duped of Rs 25 crore on the pretext of getting her a loan of Rs 100 crore from the American Federal Reserve Board, are looking for eight people, including a jeweller and a woman impersonating a banker.

The complainant is an Indian citizen who has a petrochemicals business in Dubai. She and her husband wanted a loan to expand their refinery business. In 2008, they met Ashok Patel, who had a jewellery business, and shared their financial requirements. He introduced them to Girish Kapasi (55), a scrap dealer in South Africa for 27 years.

In 2011, the businesswoman and her husband came to Mumbai where Kapasi introduced them to Savita Zaveri, who posed as a banker. Zaveri promised to get them a "guarantee of $10 million" if they spent 10% of the loan amount. "The couple paid a sum of Rs 5.71 crore to Kapasi. Kapasi and Zaveri then allegedly issued the bank guarantee certificates," said a crime branch officer.

In 2012, Kapasi introduced them to Vikas Ane, who claimed to have "10 gold bonds" of the American Federal Reserve Board. Ane transferred the bonds in their name for Rs 18 crore. They found the bonds were fake when the complainant approached two Singapore-based banks. "When the businesswoman approached Kapasi and Ane, they promised to return the amount. Ane issued a post-dated cheque that bounced. In 2015, Ane, Kapasi, Zaveri and others stopped taking her calls. Ane then threatened her with dire consequences," added an officer.

The property cell of the crime branch has arrested Kapasi and Tanaji Maruti Shendge (40), a tantrik, in the case. The accused have been booked under IPC sections for cheating, forgery, breach of trust, threatening and provisions of the Information Technology Act.

Kochi: Palluruthy police have arrested a four-member gang that had duped several job aspirants by promising to arrange visas to Singapore.

The gang operated from Mumbai and found gullible victims by placing advertisements on online classifieds like Quikr. The arrested had duped nearly Rs 50 lakh from job aspirants who had filed complaints with the Palluruthy police.

The accused are Shiju Sheelan, Jayasheelan, Krishna Kumar, Jithu Xavier and Haneefa. While Jithu is a native of Eramalloor in Alappuzha, the remaining three are from Thiruvananthapuram.

All the accused except Jayasheelan were arrested from an apartment at Vashi, Navi Mumbai, in Maharashtra by a team of police headed by Palluruthy circle inspector Aneesh K G.

Police were on search for the accused after Bibin, a Kumbalanghi native, lodged a complaint with the Kochi city police commissioner last week. "Seeing the online advertisements, jobs aspirants will send them applications. The accused will respond to the applicants. Jobs were offered with a shipping firm in Singapore," said Aneesh.

Selected applicants were later sent fake visa and flight tickets. They were requested to transfer amounts ranging from Rs 2.5 lakh to Rs 5 lakh for further formalities.

According to the inspector, the accused had collected money through bank accounts that were opened using fake documents. Different SIM cards used by the accused were also obtained using forged ID cards. Police traced their location to Mumbai by tracing the mobile tower locations and arrested them with the support of Maharashtra police. According to police, the accused had cases registered against them at Ernakulam central, Karamana, Punalur, Aroor, Kozhikode and Palakkad.

In the case registered with Palakkad police, the accused had duped money from 11 Tamil Nadu natives too. Following the arrest, the city police were approached by nearly ten people from Mumbai who have reportedly lost about Rs 35 lakh.

They accused have been booked for cheating and under provisions of IT Act. They were remanded in judicial custody on Monday. Police would seek the custody of the accused to interrogate them on several new complaints.

BENGALURU: The 26 nationalised banks, which are expecting a Rs 25,000 crore government bailout in the coming financial year have lost at least Rs 30,873.86 crore to frauds in four years -- 2011-12 to 2014-15.

According to documents accessed from the Ministry of Finance, these losses are only due to frauds of Rs 1 lakh or more. Some of these cases are being probed by investigating agencies.

In the latest development, the Central Bureau of Investigation, which is also probing the Kingfisher Airlines case, arrested a chartered accountant of Udaipur and a businessman of Jaipur in an on-going investigation of a case relating to an alleged loss of approximately Rs 1,000 crore to Syndicate Bank.

Syndicate Bank is headquartered in Karnataka. In the said period, the bank has lost Rs 1,133.31 crore and has reported 445 cases of fraud involving Rs 1 lakh or more.

The State Bank of India (SBI) and its five associate banks have lost a total of Rs 5,881.20 crore in the said period. SBI, which reported 2,049 fraud cases, lost the majority of this money (Rs 3,461.74 crore), followed by State Bank of Hyderabad which lost Rs 876.43 crore and reported 139 fraud cases.

IDBI, which is also being probed in the Kingfisher Airlines case, has lost Rs 1,350.69 crore in the said period, while reporting 388 fraud cases.
The four banks headquartered in Karnataka -- Syndicate, Corporation, Canara and Vijaya -- have lost a cumulative 4,342.10 crore, with the highest lost by Canara Bank (Rs 1,309.14 crore), which reported 334 cases of frauds.

The CBI, which is investigating the Syndicate Bank case, has registered a case under several sections of the IPC besides the Prevention of Corruption Act, indicating involvement of insiders.

The highest loss was reported in 2014-15 even as the year recorded the least number of fraud cases. PSU banks lost Rs 11,022.32 crore go down to 2,166 frauds.

In March last year, the CBI investigated a case against a private firm in Ahmedabad and its director after a joint complaint received from State Bank of India, Vijaya Bank and Canara Bank.

It was alleged that the firm expressing urgency for releasing the funds had got it released, pending execution of individual documents. Sources had pointed out that after the release of the money, the man disappeared from India.

In another case that year, an MD of a private firm from Bhopal was arrested after he went absconding in a case relating to alleged loss caused to State Bank of Indore. The CBI had said that he had conspired with officials at the bank and dishonestly & fraudulently obtained credit facilities on the basis of fake collateral securities.


Obtaining loans through fake documents is seen as a common modus operandi across cases, and investigators have often found involvement of insiders from the banks.

NAGPUR: The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has ordered a probe into allegations of irregularities committed by public, private and foreign banks to claim achievements of targets in lending to farmers and the agro-sector, an official said on Friday.

The probe has been ordered following a detailed memorandum listing the alleged frauds, submitted by the Vasantrao Naik Sheti Swavalamban Mission (VNSSM), a state-run body, in December.

The finance ministry had forwarded the VNSSM complaint to the chief vigilance officer of RBI after which the probe was initiated, said VNSSM president Kishore Tiwari, who enjoys the rank of a minister of state.

"It is shocking that due to failure of banks to implement the RBI-targeted schemes, farmers and agro-sectors are suffering and the country has witnessed lakhs of farmland suicides, including over 25,000 in Maharashtra alone, in the past decade," Tiwari said.

He said that as per RBI's guidelines, all banks in the country were given a specific target of lending 18 percent of Adjusted Net Bank Credit or credit equivalent of Off-Balance Sheet Exposure, whichever is higher, to the agro-sector and farmers.

However, a study by the VNSSM revealed the massive alleged irregularities and frauds perpetrated by the concerned banks merely to tom-tom achievements of targets and sub-targets, thereby defeating the purpose of benefiting the farmers and agro-priorities sectors, Tiwari said.

The modus operandi reportedly involved forming fictitious farmers' Joint Liabilities Groups with fraudulent documents in the name of the farmers. The disbursements of crores of rupees of agro-credits never reached them though the targets were shown as 'achieved'.

Similarly, paper-borne schemes of agro-finance against collaterals of agricultural lands of the farmers at subsidized interest rates were shown, but immediately the entire amounts were turned and put in fixed deposits at higher interest rates, Tiwari said.

"Hence, though it was shown as disbursed on paper, in reality the money never reached the farmers and while the banks 'enriched' themselves, the poor farmers resorted to suicide. This is virtually a white collar crime," he said.

Another paper-borne scheme pertains to agro warehousing receipt finance through urban cooperative socieites by way of cash credit against agro-produce, said to be stored in warehouses against which the societies claimed finance for farmers at low interest rates. Again the entire amount was converted into FDs and did not reach the famers, according to Tiwari.

The VNSSM listed other methods to defeat the agro-sector and farmers with big cash credits made available at low interest rates to corporate houses for their farming businesses to show achievement of targets.

Hyderabad: The probe into the role of Indian Forest Service (IFS) officer MD Ilyas Rizvi in Rs 55.47 crore Andhra Pradesh State Minorities Finance Corporation (APSMFC) Fixed Deposit (FD) fraud has come to a standstill.

The CID had arrested four persons way back in October 2012 but the fifth accused Rizvi has not been touched so far as the undivided government of Andhra Pradesh refused to sanction permission to prosecute him.

Now Telangana CID has once again written to the AP government seeking permission to prosecute senior IFS officer of AP cadre.

In October 2012, based on the complaint lodged by M Dana Kishore, Secretary, Minorities Welfare Department (MWD), about the siphoning off Rs 55.47 crore department funds deposited at various city branches of the Vijaya Bank, CID sleuths registered a case and arrested four accused including Ch Venkata Koti Saikumar, who is a director of Swal Computers Ltd in Begumpet, his associates N Venkata Raman of Kondapur, B Keshav Rao, a bank deposit mediator from ECIL and Vijaya Bank assistant manager Naveen Sagar.

CID also named then APSMFC managing director (MD) Md Ilyas Rizvi as an accused in the case. After examining witnesses and interrogating the accused, CID found out that for depositing Rs 80 crore APSMFC funds with banks, Rizvi received Rs 80 lakh (one per cent) as commission.

After depositing Rs 80 crore in 28 accounts of 16 banks, including Vijaya Bank in Hyderabad, the accused kept the original FD receipts with them and furnished fake FD receipts with the APSMFC. They also opened a current account at the Vijaya Bank's Koti branch in the name of APSMFC with the help of one of the accused bank employee, Naveen Sagar.

The accused pre-closed FDs worth Rs 55.7 crore by furnishing the original FD receipts in their possession and then siphoned off the amount through 240 cheques issued in the name of 16 bogus firms opened by them.

After finishing the probe in the case, in January 2014, CID sleuths wrote to the state government seeking permission to prosecute IFS officer Rizvi. The state government refused to grant permission to prosecute Rizvi and wrote to CID saying that Disciplinary Action will be initiated against him.

Now, Telangana CID officials have written afresh to AP government seeking permission to prosecute AP State IFS officer MD Ilyas Rizvi and they are yet to receive a response from the government. "We have sought permission to prosecute Rizvi from AP government. Before the state bifurcation, the state government refused to grant permission but since the state has been divided, we have decided to again seek permission from the government of residuary state of AP to prosecute the official. We have already filed charge-sheet against the remaining four accused," a Telangana CID official told TOI on condition of anonymity.

A 1985 batch IFS officer, MD Ilyas Rizvi is currently working as Additional Principal Chief Conservator of Forest (Forest Resource), Andhra Pradesh.

MUMBAI: In the past two months, 84 credit card frauds have been reported in the city, reveals the latest Mumbai police report. Cyber experts say this number is just the tip of the iceberg as less than 2% of cases get reported, and that too by customers. Very few corporates and banks come forward to lodge complaints, fearing for their reputation.

Reluctance on the part of financial institutions to provide fraud-related information hampers investigation, say cyber police. Cyber lawyer Vicky Shah said while almost all frauds get reported, only those involving high amounts are converted into FIRs. There is no restriction on the amount, though, and FIRs can be be filed even for small sums. "Many a times, card-issuers also reverse a disputed amount to a card-holder's account as there is a provision to recover the sum from the merchant through Visa or MasterCard in case of fraudulent use," said an official with a large private bank.

In 2015, on an average, 26 card fraud cases were registered every month. Between 2012 and February 2016, a total of 627 cases were filed and 92 fraudsters nabbed (see box).

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Experts and cops have zeroed in on eight different types of modus operandi that fraudsters employ to steal card information. A new trick, for instance, involves procuring card details from customers by claiming to call on behalf of the issuer and offering a card upgrade. Experts say even chip cards can be misused. "In 2015, `shimming' of chip cards to retrieve customer details took off in foreign countries. While it has not yet begun in India, security measures should be studied to tackle it," cyber lawyer Vicky Shah told TOI.

Additional commissioner of police (crime) K M M Prasanna said the current lot of cyber officers are upgrading themselves to tackle fraudsters. "We promptly register complaints and have also asked corporates to come forward to lodge them. In the coming years, we will get more tech-savvy officers who will boost the team.The officers are aware and studying all these modus operandi so that they get to the root of how fraudsters operate," he said.

Rukmani Krishnamurthy, former director, Forensic Science Laboratories, said such frauds can be controlled by generating awareness. Digital forensic investigation can glean evidence from skimmers, email source code verification, network monitoring, application testing and website verification. "Online banking frauds require a rapid and competent response. Immediate filing of a complaint and action by the cyber cell and banking security experts, independent criminologists and law enforcement department will prevent theft, help reclaim funds, and identify and apprehend criminals. Any delay will seriously hinder the investigative process and cause irreversible loss of funds. In online banking fraud cases, cyber cops and digital forensic investigators work together," said Krishnamurthy. IT expert Vijay Mukhi said financial institutions are doing little to stop credit card theft. "The world insists that you use chip and pin cards; in India, this rule is not followed by all banks."

Hyderabad: The arrest of Chunduri Venkata Koti Sai Kumar by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in the multibank fixed deposit (FD) fraud case has revealed that he masterminded the entire scam in collusion with government officials, including some All India Service (AIS) officers. When CBI caught Sai Kumar in a Mumbai hotel on Thursday , he was all set to flee from the country.

Sai Kumar was involved in a similar fraud in 2012 and had even spent a few months in judicial custody . He was arrested by CID sleuths of undivided Andhra Pradesh along with three other associates in a Rs 55.47 crore scam in AP State Minority Finance Corporation (APSMFC) n October 2012. The police also came to know that the scam was executed with the help of Indian Forest Service (IFS) officer Md Ilyas Rizvi, who was the corporation's MD at that time.

Later, CID had sought permission from the state government to prosecute Rizvi, but the government denied it. Recently , Telangana CID sleuths again sought permission from the AP government to prosecute Rizvi, but they are yet to get a response.

Meanwhile, Sai Kumar came out of prison on bail and began planning a similar fraud.

He, with the help of Mani Damodar of Prakasam district, exSBH employee KV Ramana Rao and certain bank officials siphoned off Rs 8.45 crore FD amount from SBH's Malkajgiri branch and Rs 6.15 crore FD amount from United Bank of India's Khammam branch. CBI, which arrested Sai Kumar from Mumbai, now believes that he is the key player in siphoning off Rs 44 crore FDs belonging to AP State Housing Corporation Ltd (APSHCL) and AP Pollution Control Board (APPCB) from SBH's Mehdipatnam and Singapore Township branches.

Currently, Andhra Pradesh CID is probing the cases and they have arrested eight persons. The cases are likely to be transferred to the CBI.

In their probe, CID found out that one of the accused, Thomas, who runs a poultry feed business and moves closely with several government officials, has played a crucial role in the execution of the fraud. The probe agency has also found out that a mid-level All India Service officer, who is in a key position with one of the government organisations involved, has helped the fraudsters. "Ideally, banks do not employ any broker o open FD accounts. With a single phone call, the bank representatives will come to the door-step and help. Banks also do not give any commissions for depositing money . But in all these frauds, the government organisations involved have used middlemen to deposit funds in banks which clearly indicates collusion of certain senior government officials with the fraudsters," a CBI official said.

CBI has found out that Sai Kumar was involved in similar rauds since 2004. After the arrest in Mumbai, CBI sleuths brought Sai Kumar to Hyderabad on Friday, and he was remanded n judicial custody. CBI will move a petition before the court for his police custody to identify the government officials involved n the organised fraud.

CBI arrests mastermind of State Bank of Hyderabad fixed deposit fraud case

NEW DELHI: The Central Bureau of Investigation on Thursday arrested alleged mastermind of a fixed deposit fraud at State Bank of Hyderabad in which funds of official liquidator of high court of judicature at Hyderabad were allegedly siphoned off by the employees of the bank.

VK Sai Kumar, Managing Director of Hyderabad-based software firm Swal Computers who was identified by two co-accused as main alleged mastermind was nabbed from a hotel in Mumbai by a CBI team where he has been hiding.

The agency has arrested an ex-employee of the Bank KV Ramana Rao and one Damodaran Mani who had revealed the name of Kumar as the master mind behind the fraud and main beneficiary of the fraud amount.

Kumar was also arrested in 2012 for alleged misappropriation of Rs 55.47 crore worth of fixed deposits (FDs) in Vijaya Bank, for allegedly forging documents to open current account in the name of AP State Minority Finance Corporation (APSFMC), the sources said.

The sources said he is also allegedly involved in other CBI cases of bank fraud and it is learnt that he is a habitual offender.

It is alleged that office of the Official Liquidator, High Court, Hyderabad has transferred Rs 9.86 crore to State Bank of Hyderabad, Malkajgiri Branch, Hyderabad with a request to issue Fixed Deposits in the names of various companies in liquidation.

The branch manager had sent these FDs in favour of Allwyn Watches Limited through one K V Ramana Rao, ex-employee of the Bank, the FIR alleged.

During verification, on a later date, by the Official Liquidator, it was informed by the Branch Manager that one of the FDR worth Rs 8.45 crores issued in favour of the company was prematurely closed under the purported instructions issued by the Liquidator's Office.

It is alleged that the FDRs in the possession of the Official Liquidator are fabricated ones.

The high court had orderd CBI to probe the case.

A woman and child from the Kolam tribal community sits in front of their house at Ghogharwadi in Kinwat taluka of Nanded district
States directed to keep strict vigil on issuance of SC/ST/OBC certificates and take action against erring officials who delay caste verifications. Central departments and PSUs launch massive probe on reserved category employees

The caste certificate scam is not only confined to Maharashtra or in the tribal quota. Fraudsters have dented every government department and PSUs across India and occupying all reservation categories – scheduled tribe, schedule caste and other backward classes.

The Narendra Modi-led central government has ordered all states and Union territories to keep a strict vigil on verification of claims of candidates belonging to SCs, STs and OBCs so as to prevent bogus candidates from entering government services.

Chief secretaries have been asked to stop the malpractice at district levels, from where the caste certificates are issued. A circular was issued by the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) to all the states and UTs on March 14, 2016.

"...it is requested to issue instructions to District Magistrates/District Collectors/Deputy Commissioners to ensure at their own level the veracity of caste certificates so that unscrupulous non-SC/ST/OBC persons are prevented from securing jobs meant for SCs/STs/OBCs by producing false certificates," says the circular.

The order further states: "It is advised that in order to discourage unscrupulous activities, state governments and Union territories may consider issuance of appropriate instructions for initiating disciplinary proceedings against the errant officials who default in timely verification or caste certificates or who issue false certificates."

The caste certificates are issued and verified by the offices of DMs, SDMs or city collectors which are part of state revenue departments. District authorities often face charges of delaying the verification process, reportedly at the behest of fraudsters. This helps candidates to hold the posts on basis of forged documents for years and later amnesty.

Both circulars ask states to follow an order passed by the central government on March 20, 2007. "Most states have ignored the orders as evident by the cases which continue to land up at the various courts including the apex court, and, hence, the issuance of the fresh order, said a DoPT official.

The 2007 communique clearly states "chances of collusion of the candidates with some unscrupulous employees at the district level cannot also be ruled out," and recommends disciplinary action against officers who default in timely verification of the caste status or issue false certificates.

"Until now, most fraudsters have managed to continue their job, education or other quota benefits due to the soft stand of the government or humane approach of the courts," said a highly placed official of the central government. Sources say that central government departments are also victims of the caste scam due to the callous approach of the states in issuing certificates.

The Centre has issued a similar circular to its own ministries and departments of government on October 8, 2015, cautioning them about bogus candidates. Following that, all central government departments, agencies and public sector units have now launched a massive drive to identify the bogus ST/SC/OBC employees and those found to be bogus may face actions.
Case study

The Cotton Corporation of India, a central government agency, headquartered at Mumbai had recently stripped a "tribal" officer off from two promotions sending him back to an entry level post after a vigilance report found that he was not a tribal at all. The official has already served 19 years in the department and hence a soft stand was taken rather than expelling him from the job.

"The CCI has now launched a detailed probe into caste documents of all ST employees, nearly 70, placed in 12 offices across India", a top official of the Corporation told dna.

Sinha specifically cited the example of Vijay Mallya and his once-rocking Kingfisher Airlines and blasted bankers for not filing a complaint with CBI even after four years since he stopped repayment.

The CBI on Wednesday said it investigated 171 bank fraud cases involving funds of over Rs 20,000 crore and ponzi schemes to the tune of Rs 1.20 lakh crore last year.

"We have investigated 171 cases of bank frauds in 2015 involving funds of Rs 20,646 crore. In addition, we are also investigating ponzi schemes involving funds of over Rs 1.20 trillion," CBI Director Anil Sinha said here.

On the ponzi scam involving Chandigarh-based PACL Group, Sinha said the regulator should have taken suo moto steps to investigate illegal collective investment scheme of PACL Group. The PACL Group has collected over Rs 51,000 crore in deposits in violation of Sebi norms from nearly 5.5 crore investors spread across almost all states.

Without naming Sebi, Sinha said the regulator "needed the Supreme Court to step into order investigations and later order return of money to the depositors under its supervision," Sinha said here.

"Should not the regulator have suo moto stepped in proactively to protect the rights of 5.5 crore ordinary depositors?" he wondered. While the PACL case is being probed by CBI as well for a long time, it was Sebi that passed an order in August 2014 asking the group to wind down their all illicit schemes and refund over Rs 49,000 crore to investors in the biggest ever such case.

Prior to that, the then Sebi chairman G N Bajpai way back in 2002 had himself passed an order declaring the schemes of PACL Group as unauthorised collective investment schemes. Sinha was addressing the seventh CBI conclave on combating financial crimes. The conclave is being organised in association with bankers lobby IBA.

Speaking on the alarming rise in non-performing assets of banks, Sinha said the bad loans of public sector lenders have increased from Rs 44,957 crore in 2009 to Rs 3 lakh crore in 2015, while their gross NPAs more than doubled to 4.36% in 2015 from 2% in 2009.

"The crisis in the banking and financial system runs deep and there is a growing sense of anguish among the public that while banks are strict on retail borrowers, big borrowers and large fraudsters are able to not only evade the law but enjoy the fruits of their crime," the CBI director said.

Noting that things are seriously wrong, Sinha said, "While I fully understand that loan defaults can happen due to business risks and reasons beyond control of banks, borrowers and regulators, yet a significant part of the defaults are willful and fraudulent."

Sinha specifically cited the example of Vijay Mallya and his once-rocking Kingfisher Airlines and blasted bankers for not filing a complaint with CBI even after four years since he stopped repayment. He said his agency has suo moto registered a case to probe the KFA fraud.

According to Sinha, time has come to "rethink and re-devise" strategies so that on one hand banks and financial institutions work fearlessly to power the economy towards growth but at the same time, fix the fraudsters and public officials who collude with such cheats.

"The legislative and regulatory gaps in the states and the Centre allowing ponzi schemes to prosper and cheat millions of the gullible investors need our attention too," Sinha said.

Sinha further noted that such schemes are exploiting the absence of banking in remote areas and targeting the lowest economic group of the society. The poor, particularly women, are a major target of ponzi schemes.