Bank Manager arrested for Defrauding over 30 People under guise of Mutual Fund Investment

A bank manager was arrested for allegedly scamming around 30 people under the guise of investing in mutual funds on Thursday, the Nagpada police said.

The accused, Azar Kalaam Hashmi (35), who is from Uttar Pradesh and lives in Kurla with his family, was caught following a complaint from Shabuddin Chaudhary, a small-time businessman who claims to have been robbed of Rs.25.5 lakh.

“In October 2023, while visiting the bank’s Byculla branch for usual transactions, Hashmi approached me. He inquired about my investments, reviewed my bank account, and accessed the app on my phone,” the businessman stated.

According to the complainant, Hashmi triggered him to liquidate his fixed deposits and other investments by promising higher profits.

“He informed me and the other victims that he would put our money into various mutual fund schemes. We were instructed to enter our PIN numbers and transfer the funds to his and his wife’s bank accounts,” Chaudhary claimed.

The accused additionally allegedly obtained loans from various financial institutions using the investors’ information.

“We continue to get calls from these institutions requesting loan repayments. Hashmi had downloaded loan apps to my phone and applied for loans without my knowledge,” Chaudhary explained.

Hashmi allegedly displayed fake transaction records to victims in order to persuade them that their investments were giving larger returns than other scams.

The scam was discovered when Chaudhary requested a refund of his money in mid-May. “I needed the money for a family vacation, so I requested Hashmi to return it. He said it would be credited to my account, but it never happened. Hashmi has also stopped coming to work,” Chaudhary stated.

Chaudhary, like the other victims, reported the fraud to the bank, which confirmed the bogus transactions. A formal complaint was filed at the Nagpada police station in late May, resulting in the registration of a case for criminal breach of trust and cheating on August 8.