Bank manager accused of gold theft still on the run; criminal police take over investigation

A ten-member team of the District Crime Branch has taken over investigation into a multi-crore gold scam in which a bank manager of the Edodi branch of Bank of Maharashtra near Vadakara in Kozhikode district absconded with pawned gold ornaments worth Rs 17 crore.

Deputy Superintendent of Police (Crime) G. Balachandran heads the special squad that was formed soon after suspect Madhu Jayakumar released a short video accusing one of his superiors of involvement in the incident.

The suspect had claimed that one of his senior managers was involved in the crime and that he was seen in the video acting as per the manager's instructions. He further claimed that he was not trying to flee the district but was merely delaying entry into the new branch.

The multi-million dollar fraud came to light on August 16 during the bank's verification process. The suspect had reportedly fled with around 26 kg of gold jewelry that had been pawned by various people and replaced it with fake jewelry.

In the preliminary investigation, it was confirmed that the fraud took place between June 2021 and July 2024 and targeted around 40 gold loan accounts. The 34-year-old Tamil Nadu native reportedly focused on accounts opened by low-income groups.

Police sources said they would seek the assistance of Crime Branch units in Tamil Nadu in the search for Madhu Jayakumar. They added that Cyber ​​Cell officials would also provide technical support in the search for the fugitive.