The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Tuesday arrested an Office Assistant (Sub-Staff) of the Punjab National Bank’s (PNB) Branch in Greater Noida, Uttar Pradesh, along with a private individual, in connection with an alleged fraud involving the unauthorised debit of Rs 10.24 crore from multiple customer accounts.
The case was registered on 29th October 2026 on a complaint of systematic siphoning of funds. The complaint stated that the bank officer in question, in collusion with a private individual and others (names not known), carried out a series of unauthorised transactions which drew off Rs 10.24 crore from various customer accounts at the Greater Noida branch. The complaint alleged that the debits were all done without the knowledge or consent of the account holders and that the process was deliberately manipulated.
After registering the FIR, the CBI began investigating the role of the bank employee and his associates. The CBI picked up the private accused in Maharashtra and obtained a transit remand from the Special Court for CBI Cases in Pune. That allowed the CBI to bring the accused to the appropriate jurisdiction for further questioning and production before the court. The bank employee was arrested in Greater Noida.
Officials close to the investigation say the ‘modus operandi’ involved the accused staff member using their access to the bank's internal systems to effect the unauthorised transfers. The private individual is alleged to have acted as a conduit for the diverted funds. The investigation is now reviewing transaction trails, internal audit trails, and the involvement of any other individuals who may have helped obscure the money trail.
The case highlights vulnerabilities in branch-level controls. The case clearly illustrates weaknesses in branch-level controls related to the access privileges granted to staff below the branch manager. Banking experts point out that although the core banking system is multi-layered in terms of authentication, collusion between an insider and an outside party can still circumvent the controls.
The CBI will investigate whether lapses in branch-level supervision allowed the fraud to go undetected. As the investigation continues, more arrests may happen as officials try to find other people involved and recover the stolen money. Those already arrested will likely appear before the designated CBI court, where the agency is expected to seek their custody to learn more about the conspiracy and determine what happened to the missing funds.
This is the latest in a series of bank fraud cases the CBI is handling involving insider collusion. In the past few months, the CBI has been looking at public sector banks in particular following several complaints of massive unauthorised debits. Recovering the Rs 10.24 crore and identifying the ultimate beneficiaries of the siphoned money will be a major part of the ongoing investigation, officials said.