Bhubaneswar, Sept 16: Badagada police in the capital city Bhubaneswar on Monday arrested a 55-year-old man for allegedly defrauding a person of Rs 18 lakh on the pretext of providing a job for his son at NALCO using forged documents.
The accused has been identified as Naresh Barik alias Butu, a resident of Pragati Vihar in the city.
As per reports, Butu introduced himself as an Assistant General Manager (AGM) at NALCO to the complainant, identified as Sarbeswar Samal. He also made a false claim that he holds an executive position at the public sector company to gain the victim’s trust.
The complainant told police that he met Barik in 2021 and was persuaded by him and an associate, Dillip Bhatta, that his son could secure a job at NALCO.
Trusting the offer, Samal paid Barik a total of Rs 18 lakh through PhonePe, Google Pay, bank transfers, and cash. In return, Barik allegedly supplied fake appointment letters, ID cards, gate passes, and medical fitness certificates, all crafted to resemble official NALCO documents.
The fraud was uncovered on March 19 when Samal’s son visited the NALCO office and was informed that the documents were fake following which an investigation was initiated into the matter.
During the probe, police recovered forged documents, two Rs 5 lakh cheques, digital transaction records, and e-wallet statements from the accused. Barik was arrested around 1 pm on Monday and subsequently produced before the court.
Further investigation into the matter is underway.
