Bank manager who looted millions caught after 19 years

ISTANBUL

Istanbul police have caught the suspect wanted for 19 years on charges of embezzling $4.5 million and 500,000 pounds by getting his customers to sign blank receipts while working as a manager at a bank.

The teams affiliated with the Fraud Bureau Directorate carried out work on the file, which was opened for fraud and embezzlement in 2001, and whose statute of limitations was about to expire.

It was determined that Elbeyi A., his surname identified only by initials, applied for retirement and continued to receive his pension from different bank branches.

The suspect also stayed at the houses of women he met through social media, used fake identities and constantly changed his appearance.

Thereupon, measures were taken in front of bank branches to capture the suspect, who was determined to be staying in a house in Istanbul’s Büyükçekmece district.

When Elbeyi A. came to the bank branch and tried to withdraw his money from an ATM, the police caught the suspects. Elbeyi A. was arrested after 19 years.

In 2001, bank investigators launched a probe upon a British customer’s report that 500,000 pounds were missing from his account.

When the accounts were examined, embezzlement was revealed. It was found that the suspect established good relations with his clients, and allegedly made them sign blank receipts saying that the signs were needed for the so-called new account.

As Elbeyi A. emptied the accounts of 39 bank customers with this method, an arrest warrant was issued against him. However, the suspect has vanished without a trace by constantly changing his appearance and location since 2004.