A bank cashier at GS Mahanagar Co-operative Limited Bank's Panvel branch has been booked by the Panvel city police for allegedly embezzling Rs 15.50 lakh from the bank's cash counter. The case was registered after the bank manager lodged a complaint on May 6.
Accused Cashier on the Run
Nitin Thakare, senior inspector of the city police station, stated that the accused cashier, Vikas Kadam, a resident of Palava city in Dombivli, has gone absconding after learning about the FIR registered against him by bank manager Bhausaheb Mhaske. A police team has been deployed to trace his location.
Details of the Embezzlement
According to the FIR, seven employees work at the bank's Panvel branch. Kadam had been employed with GS Mahanagar Co-operative Bank Limited since March 2018. On March 4, 2026, he was transferred to the Panvel branch as a cashier and was entrusted with money transfer transactions. On April 28, the bank deposited Rs 70 lakh from the Panvel branch to the bank's head office at Lalbaug. Later, on May 2, an official from the head office arrived at the Panvel branch with a cash van to collect the cash deposit. When Kadam and assistant cashier Daulat Raut checked the amount, three reams of Rs 500 denomination notes were found missing. Upon inquiry about the cash shortfall, Kadam gave evasive replies. When bank officials recounted the money, a total of 3,099 notes of Rs 500, amounting to Rs 15,49,500, were found to be short.
Subsequently, bank manager Mhaske complained to the bank's executive director, Avinash Rana, and assistant general manager, Sanjay Varkhade. Kadam later confessed that he had embezzled the cash and invested the money in the share market.
