Cash custodians swindle Rs 1.43 Cr meant to fill ATMs

Two cash custodians who joined a firm in Wilson Garden this year have recently made away with Rs 1.43 crore in eight months.

City police arrested one of them, Shaik Yameen (20), and are on the lookout for Kashif Ulla Khan (21). Police said both hail from and reside in Ramanagara.

Shaik Yameen joined the cash management firm Writer Safe Guard Private Limited on February 21, while Kashif Ulla Khan joined in August 24.

The Wilson Garden-based firm offers its services to private banks that include cash transport/management, automated services, bulk note acceptor services, cash replacement services, replenishing and servicing ATM kiosks.

The firm’s manager Suresh Kumar K who filed the complaint against the duo said they were cash custodians of 28 ATMs located over a particular route.

While the firm found the cash intact during an audit in August-September, they discovered Rs 1,43,42,000 missing during their audit on October 22 and 23 in 18 ATMs.

The firm zeroed-in on the two custodians while tracing the locations of the ATMs from where the amount was missing. But before they could lodge a complaint, the duo stopped attending work.

The Wilson Garden police booked a case and arrested Yameen on Saturday. They have taken him to his home in Ramanagara to recover the cash and gather information on his associate Kashif Ulla Khan.

During interrogation, Yameen said he and his associate misappropriated money from the beginning. They kept a studious watch on the routes where the firm held its audit and would replenish cash at ATMs from where they swindled large amounts of cash, said a police officer.

While they dodged the auditors for eight months, their crime was exposed when the firm held surprise random audit, the officer added.

Further investigations are underway.