Charges against Chinese men in ATM fraud case to be filed on Feb 20

A District South judicial magistrate on Wednesday put off the hearing of the ATM skimming case against Chinese nationals till February 20.

The investigation officer (IO) was supposed to present a charge sheet against the accused at yesterday’s hearing, but he requested the court for more time to consolidate the case findings before submitting the charge sheet.

Several Chinese nationals are being tried for stealing money from ATMs by using skimming devices in different areas, including the city’s Zainab Market area, the Tipu Sultan area and the Defence Housing Authority (DHA).

A week earlier, two Chinese men were awarded one year’s imprisonment for the similar nature of a case. They were also imposed a fine of Rs 50,000 each. Earlier, the court heard arguments from the counsel for the defendants and the prosecutors and it was proved that the two men, Zhong Xiaming and Zhong Xianquan, who were arrested from the DHA in July last year, were involved in using skimming devices for committing fraud. Staffers of a bank had caught four Chinese nationals, but two of them had run away.

During the period of the last two months, the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has arrested around 10 suspects, including Zing Q Ping, Zhong Sheven, Yu Genjo and Zu Zhuping, who were arrested from different parts of the city and the cases against them were registered by the FIA Cyber Crime Circle.

A lady representing the Chinese Consulate had inquired of the court about the progress of the case. The court had observed that FIA official had been directed to submit a progress report on the cases that would enable the court to conclude a legal view on the matter.