Bengaluru, February 5: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has achieved a significant breakthrough by arresting a long-time fugitive. On Thursday, the CBI apprehended Krishnamurthy Raghunath in Bengaluru, who had been evading law enforcement for over 20 years in connection with three bank fraud cases in Kolkata.
Raghunath has been accused of evading legal action since 2005, frequently changing his location to avoid capture. At the time of the fraud, he was the branch manager at the Barabazar branch of Bank of India Overseas Limited (now Indian Overseas Bank) in Kolkata. According to the CBI’s investigation, Raghunath conspired with others to open false current accounts under fictitious firms’ names and embezzled bank funds, causing a loss of approximately ₹38.25 lakh to the bank. Charges of bank fraud, criminal breach of trust, and conspiracy have already been filed against him.
Raghunath had been on the run since 2005, consistently evading the grasp of investigative agencies. The CBI arrested him in Bengaluru after a week-long special operation based on human intelligence and technical inputs, which was conducted across various locations in West Bengal, Maharashtra, and Karnataka. Following his arrest, Raghunath was presented in a local court in Bengaluru, where he was granted transit remand to be brought back to Kolkata. He is scheduled to appear before the competent court in Kolkata on February 6, 2026.
According to the CBI, this arrest marks a crucial step in addressing longstanding fraud cases in the banking sector. The agency emphasized that efforts to apprehend fugitives will continue, asserting that no one can evade the law indefinitely. The search for other individuals involved in this case is also ongoing.
This incident once again highlights the need for transparency and accountability in the banking sector. Despite the case being over 18 years old, the CBI’s persistent monitoring and use of technical intelligence have led to this success.