Employee Who Transferred Rs 21.59 Crore From Divisional Sports Department Arrested, Claims Bank Officials Were Masterminds

The contractual worker of the Divisional Sports Complex, Harshkumar Kshirsagar, who had embezzled funds of the divisional sports department amounting to Rs 21.59 crore, was finally arrested from Delhi. He was produced before the court on Wednesday.

Harshkumar is the mastermind of the scam and had been at large since the scam came to light. The police have also arrested his parents, Anil and Manisha. The crime branch police presented all three accused before the court, and they have been remanded in police custody until January 7.

False letterhead was used

Harshkumar had diverted the funds of the divisional sports department by using a false letterhead and making minor changes to the official email ID of the department. He then allegedly sent a letter to the bank for transferring Rs 21.60 crore to various accounts. The misappropriation came to light on December 21. Harshkumar then spent all the money on buying ultra-luxurious flats and cars in just 11 months. Earlier, the police had arrested his colleague Yashoda Shetty, her husband Jeevan Vindada, Harshkumar’s girlfriend Arpita Wadkar, and others in connection with the scam. Harshkumar and his parents were arrested on Tuesday. The police have seized wealth amounting to Rs 12 crore so far.

On behalf of Harsh, Adv Rameshwar Totla read a seven-page letter in court, which was sent by Harshkumar to the commissioner of police on December 25. In the letter, Harsh claimed that Deputy Director Sanjay Sabnis and Bank Manager Sanjay Sahani were the masterminds of the scam. He alleged that they had threatened him into carrying out the embezzlement.