Senior citizen’s niece accused of stealing ₹22 lakh

Mumbai: A 63-year-old man has filed a complaint accusing his niece of withdrawing ₹22 lakh from his bank account without his knowledge, using his debit card and cheques.

The complainant, who retired from a private firm, had savings of ₹95.75 lakh in his Bank of Maharashtra account at the Byculla branch as of July 1, 2023. He had written his debit card PIN and other important information in a notebook, which was reportedly stolen by his niece.

The complainant’s FIR states that during renovation work at his village residence in Pen, Raigad district, his niece, her brother, and their mother were staying with him. While the complainant stayed on the second floor, the others occupied the ground and first floors. The niece frequently visited the complainant’s house, where he kept his notebook near his bed.

While in his village, the complainant received a message on September 16, 2023, about a ₹20,000 debit from his account. He reported this to the Pen police and was advised to seek more information from his home branch in Mumbai. Upon visiting the Byculla branch in October 2023, he found that ₹7.31 lakh had been withdrawn from various ATMs in his village, and ₹15 lakh had been withdrawn using cheques, totaling ₹22.31 lakh within one and a half months.

The bank manager confirmed that ₹5 lakh and ₹10 lakh had been withdrawn on two different dates in October 2023. It was found that the niece had misused his cheques without any consent. The complainant alleged that the neice knew where he kept important documents, including his checkbook, from a previous stay four years ago. She allegedly stole signed cheques from his cupboard and withdrew ₹15 lakh from the Byculla branch.

When confronted, the accused admitted she needed money. After intervention by a distant relative, she returned ₹10 lakh and promised to repay the remaining ₹12.31 lakh within two months. However, when she failed to return the money, The complainant approached the police and filed a written complaint.

Senior inspector Sanjay Mohite of Kalachowki police confirmed that a case has been registered under sections related to cheating and forgery of the Indian Penal Code. “The suspect has not been arrested yet, but we will arrest her soon,” Mohite said.