KOCHI: As the government seeks funds to rebuild Kerala after the deluge, the CBI court here directed a couple accused in a bank fraud case to contribute `5 lakh to the Chief Minister’s Distress Relief Fund (CMDRF) on Friday.
While announcing the verdict, CBI court judge P Krishnakumar directed the accused to donate the money.
K Jayagopal, former manager of Bank of India (Thiruvallam, Thiruvananthapuram), and his wife Sheela Jayagopal were accused of conspiring with B Bhagavath Krishnan, former manager of BoI (Mavoor Road, Kozhikode) and Jayagopal’s brother S Suresh Kumar, and misappropriating the interest of `15 lakh from the deposit of `5.5 crore belonging to the Primary Education Development Society fund with BoI, Mavoor Road.
After the fraud came to light, Jayagopal and his wife emigrated to Canada in 1998. A lookout notice issued by the CBI had been pending against them. They were arrested by the CBI from Mumbai airport in June.
“Jayagopal has been convicted and sentenced to undergo one-year simple imprisonment and pay a fine of `26 lakh. Sheela Jayagopal has been imposed a fine of `70 lakh. In addition to the above said sentence, they were also directed to pay `5 lakh to the Chief Minister’s Distress Relief Fund,” stated a CBI press release. The other accused persons — Bhagavath Krishnan and S Suresh Kumar — were convicted by the court in 2010.