By Sagaya Fernando | February 15, 2026
Bengaluru, Karnataka, INDIA: A 34-year-old assistant manager of a nationalised bank has been arrested for allegedly siphoning off nearly 2.7 kg of gold ornaments pledged by customers and using the proceeds to fund online betting and gambling activities.
The accused, identified as Kiran Kumar E, was posted at Indian Bank’s Girinagar branch in Bengaluru. The theft, valued at over ₹4 crore, came to light when customers visited the branch to redeem their pledged jewellery.
According to the police complaint filed by Chief Manager Dileep Kumar, the fraud was first detected on January 2 after a customer who had closed a gold loan sought the release of pledged ornaments and found several items missing.
Stock Verification Reveals Tampering
Following the complaint, bank officials conducted a detailed stock verification of 207 packets containing gold ornaments pledged against loans over the past year. The inspection revealed discrepancies in 24 packets. Of these, three packets were found completely empty, while gold ornaments in 21 packets were partially missing.
Preliminary investigations estimated that 2,783 grams of gold had been stolen.
Misuse of Official Access
Police said that only the branch manager and assistant manager had access to the lockers where pledged gold was stored. Investigators allege that Kiran Kumar misused his access to the locker keys and gradually removed small quantities of gold during the branch manager’s absence to avoid raising suspicion.
During an internal inquiry conducted by the bank, Kumar allegedly confessed to stealing the ornaments between June 2025 and January 2026.
Gold Pledged to Finance Firms
According to investigators, the accused pledged the stolen gold with multiple private finance companies, including Manappuram Finance and Muthoot Finance, to raise money for online gambling.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (South) Lokesh B. Jagalasar said that around 1.2 kg of gold has been recovered so far. “Some of the finance companies are not cooperating fully. We will approach the court to obtain necessary directions to recover the remaining gold,” he said.
A case has been registered at the Girinagar Police Station under relevant provisions, including Section 316 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) for criminal breach of trust. The accused has been taken into custody, and further investigation is underway.
The DCP also advised bank customers to periodically verify their pledged valuables and related documentation to safeguard against insider fraud.
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