POLICE in India registered a case against Citigroup Inc Chief Executive Vikram Pandit and other top bank officials in connection with an employee’s alleged $67.2m (£43.19m) fraud, the Wall Street Journal reported yesterday.
Citigroup said last week it was investigating a set of suspicious transactions based on what it said were documents forged by an employee at a branch in India. A person familiar with the matter told reporters the transactions may involve between Rs3bn and Rs4bn ($67m/£43.06m to $89m/£57.20m).
Citigroup customer Sanjeev Agarwal, who was affected by the alleged fraud, brought a complaint to the police, who confirmed to the Journal that they have registered a fraud case against the bank.
The Journal said that under Indian law, the police are required to respond to any complaint about a potential crime by registering a case, or a “first information report.” That report marks the beginning of an investigation.
Agarwal’s complaint named Pandit and other top Citigroup executives, including former Senior Vice Chairman William Rhodes, Chief Operating Officer Douglas Peterson and Chief Financial Officer John Gerspach, according to the Journal.
Citigroup spokeswoman Shannon Bell wrote in an emailed statement that Agarwal’s “claims against senior executives are completely without basis and we intend to contest them vigorously.”
