ES Reporter 

ITANAGAR, May  20:  In a significant development, capital police arrested one Koushik Das, a prime suspect in the Rs. 35 lakh cheque forgery case, from Guwahati, Assam. This arrest comes as a crucial breakthrough in the ongoing investigation into a major financial fraud that involved unauthorized bank transfers through forged cheques.
Superintendent of police, Itanagar, Rohit Rajbir Singh in a press statement informed that the complaint was initially lodged by one  Techi Niglo, a resident of Ganga village, Itanagar, on February 8 last. Niglo reported that a substantial sum of Rs. 35 lakhs had been illicitly transferred from his SBI Ganga branch account via a forged cheque. The case was promptly registered at Chimpu Police Station and assigned to Sub-Inspector S.K. Jha for detailed investigation.
Investigations revealed that a missing cheque leaf from Niglo's chequebook was used in the fraud. It was recovered from the SBI Ganga branch. Additionally, a letter pad from M/S Hita Enterprises was found with Koushik Das, indicating his attempts to forge Niglo's signature. The fraudulent cheque led to a credit of Rs. 35 lakhs to an HDFC account at Biswanath Charali branch, held by Tridip Saikia. Subsequent transactions included re-transfers and substantial cash withdrawals, with Rs. 20 lakhs directed to M/s Kuntala Filling Station, owned by Rajib Das.
The investigation identified Koushik Das, Tridip Saikia, and Rajib Das as the primary suspects. Efforts to apprehend Koushik Das and Tridip Saikia were initially unsuccessful as they went into hiding. Rajib Das, despite being on interim bail granted by the High Court, Itanagar Permanent Bench, did not cooperate with the investigation. To prevent further illicit withdrawals, beneficiary accounts holding Rs. 22 lakhs were debit-frozen, with plans to restore the funds to the complainant.
Recently on May 18 last, through meticulous technical surveillance, Koushik Das was tracked down and apprehended in the VIP Road, 6 Mile area of Guwahati. The arrest operation was led by SI S.K. Jha under the supervision of Officer-in-Charge of Chimpu PS, Dwarka Gaadhi, IPS(P), and SDPO Itanagar DySP Kengo Dirchi.
Das was formally arrested and remanded to police custody for further interrogation to trace other accomplices, stated the SP while appealing to the public to remain vigilant and report any suspicious activities to help combat such fraudulent practices.

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Kenter Joya Riba

(Managing Editor)
      She is a graduate in Science with post graduation in Sociology from University of Pune. She has been in the media industry for nearly a decade. Before turning to print business, she has been associated with radio and television.
Email: kenterjoyaz@easternsentinel.in / editoreasternsentinel@gmail.com
Phone: 0360-2212313

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