- The woman's husband, who was a co-accused in the scam, died a year after the chargesheet was filed
- A Rs 50,000 reward had also been announced for information on the couple's whereabouts
- The CBI used image search tools and facial recognition technology to trace the woman
Using tech to identify an accused who had evaded the law for nearly 20 years, the CBI has arrested a woman who was accused in a Rs 8-crore bank fraud case.
Mani M Sekhar and her husband, RM Sekhar - directors of Indo Marks Pvt Ltd and BTC Home Products Pvt Ltd - were accused of criminal conspiracy and defrauding the State Bank of India, Overseas Branch, Bengaluru, between 2002 and 2005 by misusing non-fund-based credit limits.
The CBI had filed a chargesheet in the case back in 2007, but the Sekhars evaded court proceedings and were declared proclaimed offenders in 2009. Despite persistent efforts, the duo remained untraceable, leading to a reward of Rs 50,000 each for information on their whereabouts.
The breakthrough came when the CBI employed advanced image search tools and facial recognition technology to analyse online digital footprints. Investigators discovered that the accused had changed their identities - assuming the names Krishna Kumar Gupta and Geetha Krishna Kumar Gupta - and had stopped using their original KYC-linked credentials.
Following detailed image analysis with a match accuracy of over 90%, CBI tracked the couple to Indore, Madhya Pradesh. A field team confirmed the identities and found that RM Sekhar had passed away in 2008. Mani M Sekhar was arrested on July 12 and produced before a Bengaluru court, which sent her to judicial custody.
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