Bank manager steals 2.7 kg of gold from locker to fund gambling; arrested

An assistant manager at a nationalised bank’s branch in Bengaluru was arrested for allegedly stealing almost 2.7 kg of gold ornaments from customer lockers and pawning them to fund online betting and gambling. The accused, identified as 34-year-old Kiran Kumar, reportedly misused his access to locker keys and, during times when the branch manager was absent, gradually siphoned off small amounts of pledged gold over a period of time.

The theft surfaced on January 2, when customers visited the Indian Bank branch to retrieve their pledged jewellery. During locker verification, discrepancies emerged, prompting a detailed inspection that revealed ornaments were partially missing from 21 packets and completely missing from three. Preliminary investigations estimate that 2,783 grams of gold, valued at approximately Rs 4 crore, had been stolen.

Following the discrepancy, an official complaint was lodged at the local police station, and the police started investigating. They soon took Kumar, the accused, into custody, and during an initial enquiry, he confessed to the crime he committed. According to police sources, Kumar pawned the stolen gold at various shops and used the proceeds for online betting and gambling.

So far, the authorities have recovered nearly 1.2 kg of gold. Further investigations are ongoing to recover the remaining valuables.

As some financiers are not cooperating, the police might urge the court for necessary directions. Meanwhile, they have urged customers to routinely verify the contents of their lockers and protect their valuables.

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