CHENNAI: A 45-year-old man from Injambakkam who was on a cheque looting spree, from atleast ten banks in Adyar, Neelankarai, Sastri Nagar and Velachery, for the past four years was arrested on Thursday.The man was identified as R Suresh Kumar, 45, of Tiruvallur Salai Injambakkam, is a repeat offender who was arrested in one such similar case in 2014. The arrest was made based on a complaint from one Chithra, 56, of Thiruvanmiyur, whose cheque containing Rs 1.40 lakh was lost in the Union Bank of India, Kottivakkam. When Chithra’s cheque was not honored, even after ten days, she went looking for the cheque when she was told that no cheque existed on her name. The bank officials failed to take serious note of the case and told her that she might have misplaced the cheque. Suspecting foul play she lodged a complaint with Neelangarai police.A team headed by inspector K Natraj and his team scanned the CCTV footage and found a man picking up the cheque from the bank. The police identified the repeat offender and nabbed him from his house in Injambakkam.Interrogations revealed that he had been operating in the bank for the past four years and targeted atleast 10 banks. The suspect was known to the staff of the bank where the victim Chithra lost her cheque. “He had free access in the bank as one of his relative was employed in the bank and has retired now. None of them questioned him and he moved freely,” said an investigating officer.Explaining his modus operandi the officer said, he randomly looted the cheques that were deposited in the box and encashed the same in the counter. He would closely watch the cutomers who came to deposit the cheques. He took note of the name on the cheque and the amount before it was dropped. Later when the bank staff collected the cheques from the box, he approached them claiming that there was a mistake in the amount he had mentioned in the cheque and he would reveal the cheque bearer’s name and the amount correctly. The bank staff would believed his version and give him the correct cheque, the police added. “He chose cheques which had smaller amount, as the bank staff might ask for identity proof if the amount was large,” said the officer. The officer said the banks too were careless in handing over the money without proof. Suresh Kumar spent most of the money in online rummy game. He led a luxurious life and deposited a lumpsum amount in his wife’s account. He has been booked for cheating and forgery and remanded in judicial custody.

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