The Director of Public Prosecution (DPP) has advised the police to conduct further investigations into the multi-million fraud which was discovered at Republic Bank (Guyana) last November and two persons arrested have since been placed on bail, according to Crime Chief Seelall Persaud.
Persaud was recently asked about the status of the investigation into the $250M fraud discovered at the bank’s Regent and Camp Street branch (now at Robb and Camp Streets), and he said the police had done some investigation and had sent the file to the DPP who had returned it and advised that further investigation be done.
In relation to the two persons arrested Persaud said neither of them was a former employee of the bank.
The bank remains tight-lipped on the fraud, which was discovered some time last November but which this newspaper understands occurred over a period and started at the bank’s former Camp and Regent Streets location and continued at the new Robb and Camp Streets facility.
This newspaper was told that one of the senior employees who was sent home had made an “arrangement” with the bank.
While it is not exactly clear how the fraud was perpetrated, Stabroek News was told that so-called “customers” went into the bank and using fraudulent signatures made money transfers to various banks in Canada.
The police had contacted their counterparts at the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) for assistance and Persaud told Stabroek News last week that they had responded, indicating that they had received the request and it was being processed.
One of the loopholes at the bank which the perpetrators may have taken advantage of was the fact that there was no way of verifying addresses and identities in other countries. Sources had told Stabroek News that verification of information is done on the telephone with numbers provided by the persons conducting the transaction. It was pointed out that the person could provide the number of someone who was working in collusion with him/her.
It was reported that when the bank found out about the fraud it halted some transfers that were in progress, but sources said that maybe the bank should have allowed the transfers to go through in an effort to ascertain who was receiving the money.
Stabroek News was told that the bank learnt of the fraud when one of its customers went directly to senior officials at the New Market Street head office and made certain claims. Those officials have since been keeping the information close to their chests.
Bank of Guyana Governor Lawrence Williams had said in February that the central bank was awaiting a definitive report from Republic Bank on the recent fraud. The report was expected to set out in general terms what contributed to the fraud and the actions the bank had taken.
Williams, who was responding to questions posed by reporters on the matter, had said that the central bank had concerns about detecting fraud in the system. He had noted that the bank’s regulatory procedure includes an inspection of the financial sector to assess credit profiles and appraisals at the banks, adding that if weaknesses were detected “the institutions would usually give a timeframe within which to correct the deficiencies.”
The governor had observed that Republic Bank had its own system and stated that as a result, it had to ensure that the necessary safeguards were there while paying attention to the individuals they put in positions of trust.
Further, he had noted that there were certain rules governing the internal systems of banks, which when not adhered to would result in fraud.
Recently another fraud was discovered at the bank but this time the sum stolen was much smaller and persons have since been placed before the court.
Five men had appeared before Acting Chief Magistrate Melissa Robertson at the Georgetown Magistrate’s Court to answer the charge of conspiracy to commit a felony in relation to the fraud.
Wilfred Macheo, 19, of 12 Paradise, East Coast Demerara; Steven Gangadeen, 18, of 165 Diamond Housing Scheme, East Bank Demerara (EBD); Deodat Narine Rampersaud, 21, of 199 Grove Housing Scheme, EBD; Saisnarine Rampersaud, 22, of 199 Grove Housing Scheme, EBD, and 38-year-old Manniram Behari, a carpenter of 153 Grove Housing Scheme, EBD, all pleaded not guilty to the charges when they were read to them.
Macheo, Gangadeen, Deodat Narine Rampersaud and Saisnarine Rampersaud were former tellers of Republic Bank Limited.
And while the $250 million fraud is the largest by far, there was another one in mid-2006 when six employees were sent home in connection with the disappearance of $8 million from the bank’s Kitty/Guyoil ATM.