CCB police held for Rs.1 fraud

Bengaluru: City Crime Branch (CCB) police assistant, sub-inspector and two head constables are implicated in looting a BMTC bus conductor and another man of Rs. 1 crore demonetised currency in Sheshadipuram, Central Bengaluru.

Hombale Gowda, the ASI, and head constables Narasimhamurthy and Gangadhar have been suspended and are missing. Various steps have been taken to interrogate and inspect whether they have committed the crime at the behest of senior officials.

This incident came in light when Subanna S Managi (36), the bus conductor, and Venkatesh, a currency exchange agent, went to the High Grounds police station to complain that three people in a Maruti Swift, claiming to be cops from the Sheshadripuram police station, had robbed them of Rs 1 crore in demonetised currency. This incident exposed the currency exchange racket which is still thriving in the city.

Thus, Subanna and Venkatesh were booked under the Specified Bank Notes (Cessation of Liabilities) Act, 2017. At Sheshadripuram police station, but the fact stunned them when they learnt that no such raid was conducted then they approached High Grounds police station.

Managi confessed to police about the business of exchange of news, as he has an astounding loan of 75 lakh from the bank and it was very difficult to pay it back, thus he resorted to this business of notes exchange. A real estate agent named Satyanarayana assured him that he will repay the loan if he gets involved in this racquet. He was asked to meet two women – Ratna and Ranjani – in BTM Layout on November 25 and take Rs 1 crore in old notes from them. He did as told. Thereafter, as per further instructions, he went to meet Venkatesh on Race Course Road to exchange the notes. Around 8 pm, while he and Venkatesh were counting the cash in a car, the three policemen waylaid them, snatched the notes and fled.

During the registration of this complaint, Subanu had given the registration number of the Swift car, which was used by the people who looted the money from them. When the police investigated the matter based on this complaint, they found to their utter dismay, that it was the actual CCB police personnel who had participated in this loot.