Team Herald
SANGUEM: A major fraud by a clerical staff attached to the Post Office at Valkini in Sanguem has put the investors at the risk of losing their hard earned money – running into over Rs 15 lakh.
The investors all hailing from poor families and majority being daily wage earners had opened postal savings accounts at the Sub Post Office at Valkini.
Most of the accounts were opened in the year 2017 and the same had matured, informed an aggrieved customer Ankush Naik.
However, when the investors went to the post office to withdraw the maturity amount from their accounts, they found something fishy as the clerk refused to return the money to the investors citing one reason or other, informed Sudesh Gaonkar.
This made the investors doubt over the genuineness of the reasons cited by the clerical staff on duty at Valkini Post Office ultimately forcing the investors lodge a written complaint at the main Post Office at Sanguem.
However, when the investors personally visited the Post Office at Sanguem on Thursday, they were in for a rude shock: they were informed by the Post Master that their money was not deposited by the clerk working at the Sub Post Office at Valkini with the main Post Office at Sanguem.
The Post Master informed the aggrieved customers of the Post Office being liable only to return the money of customers which is deposited at the main post office. This made the customers doubt over the possibility of getting their money back which they had deposited at Valkini.
The aggrieved investors later marched to the Sanguem Police Station and lodged a written complaint against the postal officials.
Sources informed that there are over 38 investors who had trusted their money with the postal officials at Valkini Post Office which approximately is Rs 15 lakh, claimed Dhulo Yamkar.
Assuring the investors of detailed inquiry into the matter, the postmaster at Sanguem Post Office informed that the inquiry into the postal fraud will be conducted by an auditor and other officials attached to Ponda Post Office.
Meanwhile, the investors at the Valkini Post Office are literally sore over the issue and the manner in which the issue has been handled by the higher officials and have urged the Department for immediate solving of their issue and return their hard earned money.
