The victim of a bank fraud in Gelegphu demanded refund from the Bank of Bhutan. The woman lost close to six hundred thousand ngultrum from her savings account to scam after losing her mobile phone in June this year. She alleged BoB Connect Agents for not following due process for cash withdrawals.
Mamta Darjay wrote a letter to BoB office in Gelegphu asking for refund. She says it has been three months and she has not received any response from the bank so far. “BoB manager and the agents are quiet on the matter. I have been struggling to run the shop without money. The bank and the agents are responsible for my money.”
Meanwhile, according to the BoB office in Gelegphu, they have temporarily suspended the five BoB Connect Agents following the incident. Gelegphu police is investigating the case. They said the case cannot be forwarded to the court until the suspect is caught. The suspect is an Indian citizen and left the country on 17th of July. He allegedly withdrew cash from Mamta Darjay’s account via five BoB Connect Agents between 8th and 10th June.
The BoB Connect Agents verified only the One Time Password (OTP) and did not confirm account holder’s identity while the suspect withdrew cash.
Mamta Darjay lost her mobile phone that contains all her personal details. The suspect allegedly stole the mobile phone from her canteen at an automobile workshop at the new Industrial Service Centre in Gelegphu on 6th June. He then allegedly withdrew all her savings using her personal details she stored in mobile phone.
The BoB initiated BoB Connect Agents in 2017 to facilitate services such as fund transfers and cash withdrawals among others. The service is provided through OTP which means a request for withdrawal will be initiated after the client show the OTP received on their mobile phones. As per the bank’s Standard Operating Procedure for cash withdrawals, a client is required to provide a citizenship identity card or work permit for identification.
Karma Wangdi, Sarpang
Edited by Phub Gyem
