Bhubaneswar, March 19: In a decisive action against financial irregularities targeting government pension schemes, the Odisha Vigilance Department has arrested the main accused from a hotel. This comes after the arrest of the accused’s son.
Pradeep Kumar Mohanty, the primary suspect in the 5.56 crore rupee embezzlement case, was reappointed at the Block Education Officer (BEO) office after retiring as a headmaster. He and his wife, Geeta Rani Mohanty, had been on the run, hiding in various locations across Odisha and West Bengal.
The couple was suspected to be hiding in Kolkata, prompting a team from the Odisha Vigilance Department to conduct raids at suspected locations. Sensing danger, they fled Kolkata on Wednesday night and took refuge in a hotel in Charampa, Bhadrak, where they were apprehended early Thursday. Both are currently being interrogated. The embezzled funds were transferred to personal accounts belonging to Pradeep Mohanty, his wife, son Maatruprasad Mohanty, and others. The investigation is ongoing.
Notably, the Odisha Vigilance Department had arrested Maatruprasad Mohanty, the branch manager of Jana Small Finance Bank in Bhadrak, for his alleged role in the 5.56 crore rupee embezzlement scam on Wednesday.
This scam, which spanned from November 2018 to September 2024, involved the misappropriation of funds allocated for the BEO office in Korei, Jajpur district. Reports indicate that Maatruprasad collaborated with his father, Pradeep Kumar Mohanty, to execute the scam.
According to the Vigilance Department’s investigation, Pradeep Kumar Mohanty illegally accessed the Human Resource Management System (HRMS) and targeted the identities of 13 retired teachers (pensioners). By manipulating records, he falsely activated these retirees in service and prepared fraudulent monthly pension bills in their names.
The embezzled funds were systematically laundered through multiple transactions into various accounts at the State Bank of India (SBI) belonging to Pradeep Kumar Mohanty, his son Maatruprasad Mohanty, and other family members.
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