Agrani Bank official arrested for 43.8 million taka vault embezzlement in Chittagong
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CHATTOGRAM — Two individuals, including a bank official, have been arrested in connection with the embezzlement of 43.8 million taka from the Agrani Bank PLC Lal Dighi (East) corporate branch in Chattogram. The suspects allegedly manipulated cash bundles to conceal the theft over an extended period.
The branch general manager, Mostak Ahmed, filed a formal complaint with the Kotowali Police Station on August 10. Following the investigation, police arrested the branch’s cash-in-charge, Md. Kamrul Hossain, and an associate named Zafarullah Tanvir. Both suspects have since provided confessional statements to a local court.
According to the case files, the scheme involved a deceptive bundling method. The suspects would place high-value 1,000 taka notes on the exterior of cash bundles, while filling the interior with 100 taka notes or lower denominations. This technique allowed the perpetrators to bypass visual inspections and create the illusion that the vault held the full recorded amount of currency.
The discrepancy was discovered on August 9 during routine end-of-day reconciliation. Upon auditing the records, bank officials confirmed a deficit of 43.8 million taka. Investigators allege that the embezzled funds were invested into a cattle farm named Ishrat Agro, located in the North Burishchar area of Hathazari. The farm, managed by Zafarullah Tanvir, reportedly houses between 50 and 60 cattle.
Kotowali Police Station Inspector Md. Iqbal Hossain, who is leading the investigation, confirmed that authorities have seized two mobile phones and a 64GB flash drive containing digital evidence and communication logs. The investigation is ongoing to determine whether other bank personnel were complicit in the scheme or if additional funds can be recovered.
While bank policy mandates a daily reconciliation of cash holdings, it remains unclear how the significant shortfall remained undetected for a prolonged period. When contacted for comment regarding the oversight, branch general manager Mostak Ahmed did not respond to multiple requests for clarification. Both suspects remain in custody as the probe continues.
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