Two Auditors Arrested in Rs23cr Fake Gold Loan Scam at ICICI Bank Nagpur: The Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of Nagpur city police arrested two auditors in a financial fraud involving fake gold ornaments pledged to secure loans from nine branches of ICICI Bank, resulting in losses of Rs23.19 crore. The accused, Pramod Tete from Lalganj and Rajendra Shilankar from Pipla, were produced before a court, which remanded them in police custody for three days. Assistant police inspector Santosh Tokalwad is leading the investigation. According to deputy commissioner of police (EOW) Deepak Aggarwal, the fraud was uncovered during an internal audit. Dhananjay Thite, zonal head of ICICI Bank’s Zonal Office at Ajni Chowk, filed a complaint at Dhantoli police station. The bank appointed Vicky Vishwakarma on October 18, 2025, to conduct a gold loan audit. During inspections, several gold packets were found to contain fake metal. Subsequent checks at the Manish Nagar branch from October 20 to 27, 2025, revealed 32 fake gold packets. A comprehensive audit across nine branches identified a total of 159 fake gold packets. The complaint alleges the scam occurred between January 1, 2023, and October 31, 2025. The accused, in collusion with valuers/appraisers and 152 account holders, allegedly created and pledged counterfeit gold ornaments to obtain loans. Police have named seven valuers/appraisers, including Nandu Kharwade, Rajendra Shilankar, Pramod Tete, Dhanjay Dhomne, Pankaj Kekatpure, and Sachin Raut, along with 152 account holders as accused. Investigators suspect internal collusion and are probing for a larger "mastermind" behind the racket. The case highlights the vulnerabilities in financial systems, where internal audits and third-party valuations can be exploited for fraudulent activities.#icici_bank #economic_offences_wing #pramod_tete #rajendra_shilankar #dhananjay_thite
