Police have arrested a resident of Rishra in West Bengal for allegedly opening and operating a bank account in another individual’s name using forged identity papers, following the detection of transactions amounting to approximately Rs 24 crore. The fraudulent account, set up at a bank branch in Rajarhat, came under scrutiny after the original identity holder discovered unauthorized tax filings carried out in his name. Investigators are currently tracing the complete flow of funds to establish who remitted the money, who withdrew it, and who controlled the account operations.
Fraud Uncovered During Income Tax Filing
The matter came to light when 36-year-old Manojit Biswas, a resident of Gopalnagar in Bongaon, approached authorities after noticing discrepancies during the submission of his income tax returns. Biswas discovered that a tax return had already been filed under his name on behalf of an enterprise named MB Tradecon India. He informed the court, police, and bank authorities that he neither ran such a business nor maintained an account at the Rajarhat branch, stating that his permanent account number and personal credentials had been misappropriated to execute large-scale financial operations.
Altered KYC Documents Used to Bypass Bank Checks
A subsequent inquiry into the account-opening process revealed substantial tampering with the official records submitted for Know Your Customer verification. The photographs on Biswas’s voter identity card and PAN card were altered before the forged documents were handed over to the Rajarhat bank branch to clear compliance protocols. Investigators stated that once the account became functional, cash flows and transfers totaling roughly Rs 24 crore passed through it, prompting an expanded probe into the deposit trails, withdrawal records, and ultimate beneficiaries of the funds.
Police Probe Wider Syndicate and Fund Beneficiaries
The accused from Rishra was taken into custody on Friday, though police have withheld his identity pending further interrogation. Detectives are verifying the extent of his involvement in forging the credentials and navigating the bank verification procedures, alongside exploring whether an organized syndicate orchestrated the operation. Officers are reviewing KYC records, internal bank logs, and the complete audit trail to map every transaction linked to the Rs 24 crore turnover and identify all parties involved in the misuse of Biswas’s identity.
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