New Delhi: The police in Greater Noida have registered an FIR for criminal breach of trust against employees of a Punjab National Bank (PNB) branch, after customers alleged that crores of rupees vanished from their savings accounts and fixed deposits (FDs). The bank has suspended the branch manager and other employees.According to The Indian Express, Rakesh Nigam, chief manager of PNB’s Sector PI-1 branch, told people and reporters gathered outside the branch, “We cannot say exactly when this started. It is a scam, and those found guilty will be caught and sent to jail. All the staff has been transferred, and the money will be returned within a week.” Sixty-year-old Santosh sells tea and samosas from a pushcart in a Greater Noida village. She had deposited Rs 1.29 crore in her PNB account, out of which Rs 1.18 crore has gone missing. She had received the amount as compensation for the land acquired for the Jewar airport project. Her son went to withdraw money on Tuesday (October 27) and was told there was nothing left, she claimed. She was taken to a nearby hospital after her blood pressure fluctuated.She was among at least 18 customers who had come forward by Wednesday noon alleging ‘fraud’, a police officer told The Print. The IE report mentioned that 25 people had complained. The total amount missing is still unclear as more complaints are still coming to light. Account holders told PTI that around Rs 35 crore was missing. Another officer told IE that the exact amount had not been established and more customers might come forward over the next week. The FIR does not mention a specific amount.How the issue was highlightedA police officer told IE that customers began checking their accounts after the bank allegedly sent messages and made calls asking them to give four to five days’ notice before withdrawing more than Rs 1 lakh. One customer found the request unusual and checked his balance, prompting others to do the same.On Tuesday, Srichand, 78, went to renew an FD of Rs 1.16 crore and found the money “emptied out”. Another person Gautam, a resident from Barondi, said his farmer father’s account held Rs 94 lakh, but only Rs 16,000 remained when he went to withdraw Rs 50,000 on Tuesday. Many of the complainants are villagers who received compensation from the Uttar Pradesh government for the Jewar airport land.Customers alleged that their FDs were closed before they matured and the money was transferred to other accounts. One person Haneef Khan said Rs 39 lakh had disappeared from his savings account without a message or his signed permission. Similarly, Zakir said he had received no alert about the Rs 9.5 lakh that went missing from his account, PTI reported. Some account holders claimed that they had been unable to check their account entries because employees said an RBI audit was underway. Dharamveer, 75, from Raipur Bangar village said that only Rs 61,000 remained of his Rs 17.5 lakh and that his account had shown no entries for two years. He said he was told five months ago that an audit was taking place. Last week, an employee allegedly asked him to return after Diwali, saying a new machine was expected.The FIR was registered at the Beta-2 police station against unidentified bank employees under Section 316(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, The Print reported. Assistant Commissioner of Police Sanchit Sharma said the complaints were being investigated and the bank was conducting an internal inquiry. The bank’s anti-corruption team was also examining how the money had been withdrawn or transferred and who was involved. Police are checking whether the money was stolen, lost through another irregularity or siphoned off.Villagers protested outside the branch on Tuesday and Wednesday. Members of farmers’ unions also staged a sit-in, demanding strict action. Police were deployed to prevent people from entering the branch. Srichand said farmers would continue their protest until every rupee was returned.