In a significant breakthrough, the Economic Offences Wing has arrested two businessmen from Chhattisgarh in connection with a ₹9.56 crore banking fraud involving cloned cheques. The case pertains to large-scale illegal withdrawals from the District Mineral Foundation Trust account in Odisha, exposing a sophisticated interstate financial crime network operating across several states.
The accused have been identified as Surjit Roy and Sameer Srivastav, both residents of Raipur who operate two companies in Chhattisgarh. According to investigators, the duo is part of a wider organized syndicate that has been systematically siphoning funds using forged banking instruments and layered transactions designed to conceal the money trail.
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Officials stated that the fraud was executed in April 2024 through the use of four cloned cheques presented on two different dates. These forged instruments were used to illegally transfer funds from the government-linked account into private entities. The investigation revealed that multiple shell firms and a complex chain of bank accounts were used to obscure the origin and destination of the money.
Authorities confirmed that a total of ₹9,56,76,600 was fraudulently diverted into two primary accounts linked to a private firm. The funds were subsequently routed through multiple intermediary accounts in an attempt to break the transaction trail. However, enforcement agencies managed to freeze approximately ₹5.04 crore during the investigation, while an additional ₹13.56 lakh was blocked across 33 different bank accounts.
Officials described the operation as part of a highly organized financial crime network with links extending beyond Chhattisgarh to Madhya Pradesh, Jharkhand, West Bengal, and Odisha. The syndicate is believed to have been active for an extended period, using cloned cheques, fake firms, and coordinated withdrawals through intermediaries to carry out repeated frauds.
So far, several arrests have been made in connection with the case, including individuals from Madhya Pradesh, West Bengal, and Chhattisgarh. Earlier detentions in the same investigation have helped authorities identify the broader structure of the syndicate. Investigators believe that interrogation of the two newly arrested businessmen could provide crucial leads to uncover the key masterminds behind the network.
The case highlights an evolving pattern in banking frauds, where criminals increasingly rely on technical forgery and multi-layered fund transfers to exploit vulnerabilities in financial systems. Experts note that cloned cheque frauds are particularly challenging to trace due to the deliberate fragmentation of transactions across multiple accounts and jurisdictions.
Investigators are now focusing on tracking the complete money flow, including identifying all beneficiary accounts and shell companies involved in the chain. Preliminary findings suggest that the syndicate maintained a network of dummy firms specifically created to route illicit funds and avoid detection by banking surveillance systems.
Authorities further indicated that more arrests are likely as the investigation progresses, with several suspicious accounts and transaction patterns already under scrutiny. The case is being treated as part of a larger interstate financial crime operation involving coordinated efforts between multiple layers of operators, from small intermediaries to major handlers.
Officials have intensified efforts to analyze digital banking records and financial documents to reconstruct the entire fraud mechanism. The investigation aims to establish how the cloned cheques were generated, who facilitated their clearance, and how the funds were systematically dispersed across various accounts.
The Economic Offences Wing stated that the interrogation of the arrested accused is ongoing and is expected to provide critical insights into the operational structure of the syndicate. Authorities believe that the full extent of the scam, including the identities of key masterminds and financial beneficiaries, may soon be uncovered as the probe advances.
