Man arrested by EOW for stealing Rs 9.6 cr from DMF fund.

On Thursday, an official from the Economic Offence Wing of the Odisha Police announced the arrest of a man in connection with a case of embezzlement. The man, identified as Brajesh Mishra, was taken into custody from Chhattisgarh and brought to Bhubaneswar on Tuesday. This arrest was made after he was produced in court in the neighbouring state on a transit remand.

The arrest was made based on a complaint filed by the chief manager of a nationalized bank's Baripada branch. According to the Economic Offence Wing, a group of fraudsters managed to siphon off Rs 9.56 crore from the District Mineral Foundation trust of Zilla Parishad, Mayurbhanj, by using clone cheques in April 2024. However, thanks to prompt action, Rs 5.04 crore was blocked, and Rs 13.56 lakh in 33 different accounts have been frozen.

During the course of the investigation, the police officers discovered that two of Mishra's construction companies had received transfers of Rs 98 lakh and Rs 49 lakh respectively. Of this amount, Rs 14.19 lakh had been transferred to Mishra's own bank account, while the rest had been sent to other accounts with malicious intent. The officer in charge of the case revealed that Mishra was a member of a larger gang that operated across different states like Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Jharkhand, West Bengal, and Odisha.

Following his arrest, the Economic Offence Wing has gathered significant leads about the entire gang and their activities. They have been carrying out such fraudulent activities for the past four years. An investigation is currently underway to identify other members of the gang, including their leader.

Previously, three other individuals involved in the case, namely Pomesh Tembhare, Ghanshyam Ahuja, and Ajmir Mondal, had been arrested from Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, and West Bengal respectively. The swift action taken by the Odisha Police has once again proven their commitment to maintaining law and order in the state. This incident serves as a reminder that the authorities will not hesitate to take strict action against those who engage in such illegal activities.