SAHIWAL: Police booked seven employees of the Punjab Provincial Cooperative Bank Limited (PPCBL), Harappa branch, including the bank manager and a goldsmith, for allegedly replacing clients` gold worth Rs16.5 million kept in the lockers with counterfeit gold having the same weight.

Harappa police registered cases against seven employees Amanat Ali (manager), Nauman Akram (ACRO), Faryal Mumtaz (cashier), Zafar Iqbal (guard), Ashar Majeed (private security guard), Q amar Shahzad (peon), and Javed Iqbal (bank goldsmith) under sections 420, 468, 471, and 408 of the Pakistan Penal Code (PPC), on a complaint of PPCBL Senior Vice President/Zonal Chief Nazir Ahmed.

As per the police, lastyear,SajidBashir,aHarappa branch client and resident of Harappa city, had taken a loan by pledging gold with the bank. In February 2025, he paid back the loan amounting to Rs566,096 and sought the return of his gold from the manager.

Sajid Bashir alleged that manager Amanat Ali, however, deferred return of his gold, saying that the bank goldsmith was on leave for a few days.

After repeated refusals by the manager to return the gold on different pretexts, Sajid got suspicious and filed a written complaint with the bank`s zonal chief on April 8, 2025.

The zonal chief appointed Awas Khalid, deputy zonal chief, to investigate the matter.

On April 9, Mr Khalid detected embezzlement in the gold lockers` account.

On April 17, the bank`s Lahore-based audit teamconducted a surprise visit to the Harappa branch, along with the Okara branch goldsmith to check all gold lockers.

The visiting team found that out of 113 cotton bags containing gold in the lockers, 15 had been replaced with 533 gram counterfeit gold.

The audit team identified that the bank manager, goldsmith, and other staff connived to replace the original gold with counterfeit items.

Following these findings, the matter was reported to the police which booked the seven employees, including the goldsmith and the manager.

Harappa police have yet to apprehend any of the suspects.

WOMAN RAPED: Police claimed to have arrested two men for allegedly abducting a young woman who was later raped by one of them at 16/SP village of Pakpattan tehsil.

As per police sources, 19-yearold `S`, a resident of 16/SP village, went to the house of their acquaintances in the village. As she was returning home, she was allegedly abducted by two suspects and their unknown accomplice riding a motorcycle.

They said the suspects, belonging to the same village, took `S` to an abandoned house where she was locked in a room and later raped by one of the suspects `M`.

The next morning, the woman got a chance and escaped from the house, where she was locked,andreturned toherparents, who approached the Saddar police with a complaint.

The police registered a case on the complaint of the woman`s father Alla Ditaa farm labourer. Pakpattan District Police Officer Javed Chadhar said both nominated suspects have been arrested within 24 hours of the incident. He added that police were looking for their accomplice.who was later raped by one of them at 16/SP village of Pakpattan tehsil.

As per police sources, 19-yearold `S`, a resident of 16/SP village, went to the house of their acquaintances in the village. As she was returning home, she was allegedly abducted by two suspects and their unknown accomplice riding a motorcycle.

They said the suspects, belonging to the same village, took `S` to an abandoned house where she was locked in a room and later raped by one of the suspects `M`.

The next morning, the woman got a chance and escaped from the house, where she was locked,andreturned toherparents, who approached the Saddar police with a complaint.

The police registered a case on the complaint of the woman`s father Alla Ditaa farm labourer. Pakpattan District Police Officer Javed Chadhar said both nominated suspects have been arrested within 24 hours of the incident. He added that police were looking for their accomplice.