Elisabeth Iler, a 75-year-old American citizen living in Mumbai, claims she was duped of ₹2.5 crore by a former relationship manager of her private bank and his partner. Despite repeated appeals, her plea for justice remains unheard as police delay filing an FIR in a case that raises questions about fiduciary abuse in India’s banking sector.
A Retired Professor’s Financial Ruin Begins with Trust and Ends in Alleged Theft
What began as a routine banking relationship has spiraled into one of Mumbai’s most unsettling cases of alleged financial betrayal. Elisabeth Iler, a 75-year-old American citizen and retired professor who moved to India in 2009 to live with her husband, has accused a former relationship manager of a prominent private bank and his alleged partner of duping her out of ₹2.5 crore—money she had transferred to India after selling property in Florida in 2019.
Iler alleges that she placed her entire life savings in the hands of the relationship manager, who presented himself as a trustworthy wealth adviser. Between 2020 and 2022, during the COVID-19 pandemic, Iler was stuck in New York and remained in regular communication with the manager, who persuaded her to shift funds from her U.S. accounts into “lucrative Indian investments.”
However, instead of channeling the money into legitimate assets, the accused allegedly used OTPs, forged signatures, and redirected the funds into their own personal and privately controlled accounts. According to Iler, she was misled into investing in properties in Noida and Chandigarh, none of which materialized. Meanwhile, she was made to believe her money remained safe in India-based accounts under her name.
No FIR, No Resolution: A Legal System Struggles to Act
Despite filing complaints with Mumbai’s DN Nagar police station, Iler says no First Information Report (FIR) has been registered, even after several follow-ups and documented evidence. Her lawyer emphasized that this was not merely a case of financial misjudgment, but a calculated abuse of fiduciary responsibility by bank employees who should have been guardians of trust.
“This case is a classic example of how institutional channels meant to protect customers can be weaponized,” said her legal counsel. “What legitimate banker asks a senior citizen for OTPs and then transfers their money to personal accounts, calling it an investment?”
The accused allegedly went so far as to pressure Iler into believing that transferring funds into their own names was standard practice for “expedited investments” and even introduced a woman, whom he called his wife, to reinforce trust. The couple’s charm and sophistication, Iler said, allowed them to manipulate her emotionally, posing as surrogate children while financially gutting her accounts.
She claims that even senior officials at the bank ignored signs of wrongdoing, enabling the fraud to go unchecked. After exhausting internal grievance channels, Iler turned to the police but to no avail.
The Response and the Road Ahead: A Systemic Failure?
The accused former relationship manager has denied all charges, claiming in a written statement to the police that no fraud or misappropriation occurred. He stated that Iler benefited from various transactions, receiving shares and property in exchange for her payments, and accused her of “conveniently suppressing the benefits” in her complaint.
However, no proof of such transactions has been made public, and the burden of evidence remains with the authorities. Meanwhile, the emotional and psychological toll on Iler continues to mount.
“I’m not asking for sympathy. I’m asking for justice,” Iler said. “Every day I live with anxiety, shame, and regret—not just for the loss of money, but for the betrayal of trust.”
