Large-scale ATM fraud unearthed in Kolkata; 2 Roman nationals arrested

A large-scale ATM fraud has been busted wherein as much as Rs 20 lakh have been siphoned off in the past few days in Kolkata. A special investigation team of Kolkata police has arrested two Roman nationals from south Delhi in connection with the alleged fraud.

The police have recovered at least 18 fake ATM cards from their possession, reported Prabhat Khabar. A face mask and two passports have also been seized by the police. The arrested accused are slated to be brought to Kolkata for further investigation.

Those who have been hit by the fraud include 10 bank employees and one assistant general manager of a private sector bank. Meanwhile, banks have assured the affected customers that if they submit a copy of FIR, the money would be credited to their account in the next seven to 10 days.

Around five days back, some customers of Canara Bank, Punjab National Bank and Kotak Mahindra Bank reportedly got a message about money being debited from their accounts. Following this, they approached their respective banks and the fraud was unearthed.

The report in Prabhat Khabar quoted Kolkata joint police commissioner (crime) Pravin Tripathi as saying that as they began the investigation, they found that most of the money had been withdrawn from an ATM in south Delhi.

A team of Kolkata police was rushed to south Delhi and the personnel were stationed outside the ATM in plain clothes. Two foreign nationals were spotted repeatedly going inside the ATM. The police later detained them and recovered 18 ATM cards from their possession.

The ATM cards seized by the cops were black, with no names or numbers.