Police in Fulgazi upazila of Feni district have arrested three individuals accused of embezzling about Tk 5.1 million from government funds through cheque forgery. The suspects—former stenographer-cum-computer operator Partha Sarathi Pal, current office assistant Md. Firoz, and Noor Islam—were detained on Tuesday morning. The alleged fraud involved altering the amount and wording on 26 cheques issued for upazila development projects.

According to police and upazila administration sources, the irregularities were discovered when the acting administrator and Upazila Nirbahi Officer (UNO) Fahriya Islam reviewed financial records during a handover process. Discrepancies between cheque counterfoils and bank withdrawals revealed that the amounts had been inflated after obtaining the UNO’s signature. The scheme reportedly continued for about a year until March of the current year.

A case was filed by Abdul Halim Chowdhury Sujon, a stenotypist-cum-computer operator at the upazila office. Police said the accused have given confessional statements during preliminary interrogation, and relevant financial documents are being verified for further legal action.