Suspended IFS officer Abhay Kant Pathak’s son Akash Kumar Pathak, in connivance with expelled Gopalpur BJD MLA Pradeep Panigrahi has duped many job aspirants of huge amounts of money in the State, informed Crime Branch ADG Soumendra Priyadarshi on Saturday.
He told reporters that six persons had transferred money to Panigrahi’s and his close associates’ bank accounts after being assured of jobs in the Tata Motors. Of the six complainants, two had transferred money directly to the bank account of Panigrahi and four to the accounts of his associates.
Notably, Akash Pathak, who was scheduled to marry the daughter of Panigrahi, has cheated many job aspirants by impersonating himself as the Managing Director in-charge of Tata Motors, the ADG said.
He reiterated that the Vigilance police had arrested Additional PCCF Abhay Pathak and Akash on th charges of acquisition and possession of disproportionate assets. Akash is the main accused in a fraud case lodged with CID CB on September 23 and the investigating agency has taken him on a five-day remand for interrogation. A case was registered against him under Sections 419, 420, 467, 468, 469 and 471 of IPC and Sections 66C and 66D of IT Act.
“During investigation by the Cyber police station of the CID CB, it is found that Akash had used a fake logo and stamps of Tata Motors and also created a fake email ID and visiting cards to impersonate as the MD of the company. He was issuing fake job letters to gullible job aspirants after collecting money from them through Panigrahi and his close associates. Pathak had also started online training classes for such job aspirants,” said the ADG.
Akash’s personal secretary David Peter was also interrogated in this connection and it was revealed that many other job aspirants have been cheated after giving huge amounts of money to Akash and Panigrahi and his associates on assurance of jobs in Tata Motors.
Panigrahi, along with his associates, have cheated several aspirants on job pretext saying his to-be son-in-law works with Tata Motors, the ADG stated and requested all those who have paid money to Akash and Panigrahi to come out and report so that strong action can be taken as per law.