Impersonation scam hits SBI Gangtok branch, three detained in fraud case

A case of financial fraud involving impersonation and cyber deception has come to light in Sikkim’s capital, Gangtok. The Sadar Police Station has registered a case under FIR No. 94/2025, dated July 9, 2025, against one Aman Mishra and unidentified individuals under Sections 318(2) and 319(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023. The case is currently under investigation.

The FIR was lodged by Pankaj Kumar, a 41-year-old resident of Deogarh, Jharkhand, who is presently living in Gangtok and working as the Branch Manager of SBI SME Branch in Gangtok. According to his complaint, the incident began on July 4, 2025, when a branch official received a phone call from mobile number 9208663901. The number displayed the name "Mr. Harsh Dalmia" along with a photo on the Truecaller app.

The caller claimed to be Harsh Dalmia, the known proprietor of Rajsons Enterprise, a genuine and long-standing customer of the bank. He told the bank official that he wanted to open a Fixed Deposit (FD) of ₹5 crores and requested an overdraft facility against it. He even scheduled a meeting for 5:00 p.m. that day at his office in Tadong but later cancelled the meeting, citing personal reasons.

The next day, on July 5, 2025, the caller again contacted the branch and repeated his proposal. He claimed that the funds would be transferred from his account in ICICI Bank and set another meeting at 1:00 p.m. However, at around 10:55 a.m., he again called to say that his cheque book had been exhausted and urgently requested an RTGS transfer of ₹10,55,935 from Rajsons Enterprise’s SBI account to an account belonging to Aman Mishra at Union Bank of India (Account No. 579802010011280, IFSC: UBIN0557986).

Trusting the caller and based on the long-standing relationship with Rajsons Enterprise, the branch processed the RTGS transaction. The caller also said he would sign the necessary paperwork during the scheduled meeting. However, around 12:25 p.m., the staff of Rajsons Enterprise called the branch and informed them that they had also received suspicious calls from the same number. They confirmed that Mr. Harsh Dalmia had not made any such request and that it was a fraud.

After internal verification, it was confirmed that someone had impersonated Mr. Dalmia using voice modulation, a fake WhatsApp display photo, and accurate customer details. The impersonator had even contacted Rajsons staff with similar requests for adding a beneficiary and conducting transactions through Internet Banking.

Realizing that the bank had fallen victim to a well-planned cyber fraud, the Branch Manager filed a written FIR, requesting immediate police action.

Following the FIR, three persons have been detained under Section 35 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), 2023, in connection with the case. Additionally, one vehicle was challaned under the Central Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, during the ongoing investigation.