Retired bank officer cheated of ₹4 crore under the pretext of RAW’s secret mission reward!

Conspiracy by brother-in-law, nephew, and other relatives; Cheating worth crores using Home Minister’s fake name; 5 booked

Pune – Posing dreams of a “job in the intelligence agency,” “secret mission for the nation,” “₹38 crore reward,” and “direct contact with the Home Minister,” a shocking case has come to light where a retired bank officer from Pune was duped of a staggering ₹4,06,07,355. What makes the case even more shocking is that the complainant’s close relatives themselves were involved in this fraud. In this regard, Parvati Police Station has registered a case of cheating against 5 accused under BNS 318 (4), 204, and 3 (5) (criminal conspiracy).

The complainant, Suryakant Dattatray Thorat (age 53), resident of Plot No. 61, Vijay Chaitanya Society, near Global Hospital, Dattawadi, Pune, is a retired officer from Saraswat Bank’s Somwar Peth branch. He currently lives in Pune with his wife, Archana Thorat.

In 2019, his wife’s brother, Sunil Babanrao Prabhale, contacted him and claimed that his son, Shubham Prabhale, was employed in the central government’s intelligence agency. He further said that Shubham had played an important role in a secret mission for the nation and that he would be rewarded ₹38 crore by the government. However, to receive this reward, process fees, legal charges, and gifts for senior officials would have to be paid.

As Thorat’s communication with Shubham and Sunil increased, his trust in them grew. They told him that the work was in its final stage and that the money would be returned once the payment was made. To gain his confidence, they falsely took the name of Union Home Minister Amit Shah and even staged “conference calls” pretending to be speaking with him. From time to time, they kept demanding money for various reasons. This scheme continued from 2020 until 2024.

The accused cited reasons such as application fees to the Ministry of Defence, gifts for senior officers, lawyer’s fees, travel to Delhi, etc., to extract lakhs of rupees. Not only did Thorat pay his own money, but he also borrowed large sums from acquaintances and handed them over to the accused. Some transactions were made in cash, while others were transferred through banks.

The accused used accounts from Saraswat Bank, Axis Bank, Bank of Maharashtra, and IndusInd Bank for these transactions. Funds were directly deposited into the following accounts: ₹1.82 crore into Shubham Prabhale’s account, ₹10.93 lakh into Omkar Prabhale’s, ₹40.67 lakh into Prashant Prabhale’s, ₹7 lakh (cash) with Sunil Prabhale, and ₹1.05 lakh into Bhagyashree Prabhale’s. In addition, amounts borrowed from relatives – ₹17 lakh, ₹25 lakh, ₹10 lakh, ₹6.5 lakh, ₹3.5 lakh, and ₹3 lakh – were also handed over. Altogether, the total fraud amounted to ₹4,06,07,355, as stated in the complaint.

After enduring this fraud for four years and losing all hope of recovering the money, Thorat finally lodged a complaint at Parvati Police Station on 15 September 2025. Accordingly, a case of cheating has been registered against Shubham Sunil Prabhale, Sunil Babanrao Prabhale, Omkar Sunil Prabhale, Prashant Rajendra Prabhale, and Bhagyashree Sunil Prabhale. All the accused are residents of Dhanakwadi and Sambhajinagar, near Vitthal Mandir, Sahakarnagar, Pune.

Preliminary investigation has revealed that the accused used fake names, forged identities, fabricated documents, and fraudulent banking transactions to carry out the crime in collusion. Police have begun scrutinizing their bank accounts, and forensic investigation of the financial transactions is underway.

Police have appealed to citizens to remain alert and not fall for lures of large sums, government jobs, or rewards. They urged people to protect themselves from such frauds and immediately report any suspicious activities to the police.