A man entrusted with caring for a 95-year-old retired district registrar in Vadodara in the absence of his family members allegedly turned out to be the biggest threat to his savings. The live-in caretaker has now been booked for forging his employer’s signature to swindle Rs 1.2 lakh and attempting to withdraw Rs 22 lakh more.
The fraud came to light after the retiree’s son noticed a discrepancy while withdrawing cash using his ATM card. A mini-statement revealed that Rs 1.2 lakh had been withdrawn through a cheque bearing a forged signature on May 22, five days before the caretaker, Anilbhai Ambalal Makwana, left the family.
According to the FIR registered on Tuesday at the Akota police station, Makwana was deputed by an agency engaged by the family to provide round-the-clock assistance to the nonagenarian, as both the son, a telecom contractor from Diwalipura, and his wife were occupied with their business.
Jagrut Vora told the police that Makwana had unrestricted access to his father’s room, where the family kept his chequebooks and other documents in a drawer. On May 27, Makwana informed the family he would be away for two to three days. It was only on June 1, when Jagrut went to withdraw cash using his father’s ATM card, that he noticed the withdrawal of Rs 1.2 lakh.
A call to customer care revealed the amount had been debited through a cheque encashed at an ICICI Bank branch in Khambhat in Anand district. When the family tried to reach Makwana again, his phone was switched off.
Cheque for Rs 22 lakh from pension account
Days later, on June 5, the family received a bank alert about a second cheque—this one for Rs 22 lakh, drawn on the father’s pension account with Bank of India—submitted for clearance. The transaction did not go through only because the family had already placed a stop-payment order on the account following the first fraud.
The FIR notes that the crime took place between February 27 and June 5, though the police complaint was filed only on July 28, two months after the alleged fraud.
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The police have booked Makwana on charges including cheating and forgery.
“We have begun a probe and are looking out for the accused. The case highlights the vulnerability of elderly persons dependent on hired caregivers as the family members are working or abroad. It is always advisable to have someone supervise the caregivers… and access to sensitive documents and finances should not go unmonitored,” a police officer said.
Aditi Raja is an Assistant Editor with The Indian Express, stationed in Vadodara, Gujarat, with over 20 years in the field. She has been reporting from the region of Central Gujarat and Narmada district for this newspaper since 2013, which establishes her as a highly Authoritative and Trustworthy source on regional politics, administration, and critical socio-economic and environmental issues.
Expertise:
Core Authority & Specialization: Her reporting is characterized by a comprehensive grasp of the complex factors shaping Central Gujarat, which comprises a vast tribal population, including:
Politics and Administration: In-depth analysis of dynamics within factions of political parties and how it affects the affairs in the region, visits of national leaders making prominent statements, and government policy decisions impacting the population on ground.
Crucial Regional Projects: She consistently reports on the socio-economic and political impact of infrastructure projects in the region, especially the Statue of Unity, the Sardar Sarovar Project on the Narmada River, the Mumbai-Ahmedabad High Speed Rail bullet train project as well as the National Highway infrastructure.
Social Justice and Human Rights: Her reporting offers deep coverage of sensitive human-interest topics, including gender, crime, and tribal issues. Her reports cover legal proceedings from various district courts as well as the Gujarat High Court (e.g., the Bilkis Bano case remission, POCSO court orders, Public Interest Litigations), the plight of tribal communities, and broader social conflicts (e.g., Kheda flogging case).
Local Impact & Disaster Reporting: Excels in documenting the immediate impact of events on communities, such as the political and civic fallout of the Vadodara floods, the subsequent public anger, and the long-delayed river redevelopment projects, Harni Boat Tragedy, Air India crash, bringing out a blend of stories from the investigations as well as human emotions.
Special Interest Beat: She tracks incidents concerning Non-Resident Gujaratis (NRIs) including crime and legal battles abroad, issues of illegal immigration and deportations, as well as social events connecting the local Gujarati experience to the global diaspora. ... Read More
