Banker tries to embezzle money from Krishi Bank

After Bangladesh Krishi Bank created official email accounts, a common password was set before assigning those accounts to officials concerned.

Most officials did not change their account passwords, and a Krishi Bank official devised a plan to steal money from the bank by accessing email accounts with the common password.

Faisal Bin Rashid, chief regional officer of Krishi Bank branch in Radhanagar, Magura, set up a plan to embezzle money by sending fake bank telegraphic transfer (TT) orders using official email accounts. He sent one such fake TT to a branch of the bank in 2020, but got caught on his first attempt.

CID Special Superintendent of Police (Cyber Investigation and Operations), SM Ashraful Alam, told The Business Standard (TBS), "We found evidence of Faisal Bin Rashid sending a fake Tk5 lakh TT. He knew a lot of information about Krishi Bank as he worked there and tried to use that for stealing."

The CID's Cyber Police Centre filed a chargesheet in court in the second week of this month after investigating the incident.

According to the chargesheet, Faisal fraudulently obtained a SIM card registered in the name of the wife of one of his acquaintances to execute his theft.

He used that phone number to pose as one Md Nazrul Islam and sent a fake TT order of Tk5 lakh using two Krishi Bank branch email accounts, one in Lemua, Barguna, and another in Madhukhali, Faridpur.

However, concerned officials of the bank investigated the suspicious TT order, and found it was fake.

In his confessional statement, Faisal said it was easy for him to send a fake TT as all the email accounts of the bank had the same password.

Since early 2020, Faisal has served as chief regional officer at the Krishi Bank branch in Radhanagar, Magura.

Shortly after his attempt to embezzle money with fake TTs, another case was filed against him in Magura for allegedly being involved in embezzling Tk14 lakh. He was then suspended from the bank.