SBI staff saves senior citizen from losing ₹30 lakhs meant for ‘wife’s treatment’ to fraudsters

Staff at the State Bank of India’s (SBI) Lothukunta branch in Hyderabad successfully prevented a digital scam attempt aimed at defrauding a 78-year-old doctor of ₹30 lakh.

In a statement released on November 27, 2024, SBI Hyderabad Circle explained that the elderly doctor, whose wife is also a physician, visited the branch and asked Branch Manager Naveen Kumar to close his Senior Citizen Savings Scheme (SCSS) account and transfer ₹30 lakh to his savings account.

The Branch Manager sensed that something was wrong and noticed that the customer was receiving frequent calls from the scammers urging him to hurry. Upon further questioning, the customer revealed that he needed the money for his wife’s treatment, as she was hospitalized due to a brain hemorrhage.

No patient by that name was found at the hospital. Sensing something was off, the bank official informed his Regional Business Office, which then reached out to the private hospital and confirmed that there was no one admitted under that name. The Branch Manager contacted the police, and the senior citizen explained that a man posing as a Delhi Customs Officer claimed that a parcel containing 16 passports and ATM cards had arrived in his name from Malaysia.

Another individual, pretending to be a senior officer from the Delhi Crime Police, stated that 30 bank accounts had been opened using the senior citizen’s Aadhaar card information, linking him to a ₹88 crore money laundering scheme. The scammers instructed the senior citizen to close his SCSS account and transfer the money to a savings account.

Thanks to the prompt actions of the branch staff, the senior citizen was saved from becoming a victim and losing his money, according to SBI. They urged customers to report any incidents of digital fraud or arrests by calling 1930 or visiting the government website www.cybercrime.gov.in.

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