VRI cashier interdicted over Rs. 15 Mn fraud

The Gannoruwa Veterinary Research Institute (VRI), which is under the administration of the Animal Production and Health Department has submitted a complaint to the Criminal Investigation Department yesterday (27) regarding an incident in which the cashier of the Gannoruwa Animal Research Institute, had defrauded over Rs.15 million for many years, by entering fake numbers, while computerizing amounts on receipts related to acceptance of money.

The Animal Production and Health Department while having launched an internal investigation themselves has interdicted the cashier pending an inquiry.

Animal and animal feed import and export test reports should be obtained from the Veterinary Research Institute. All payments for those have been accepted by this cashier.

During investigations conducted up to now, it has been revealed that this fraud had been carried out since 2018 over a period of five years. It is compulsory for the private sector as well as the public sector to obtain reports from this venue when importing or exporting animals and animal feed subsequent to making a payment. In addition, when purchasing one-day old chicks from the Central Poultry Research Institute payments have to be made to the cashier of the Veterinary Research Institute. The chicks can be obtained from the relevant place, once the receipt issued by the cashier is presented to indicate that payment was made. Further, when animals or pets die of various diseases test reports are issued by this place.

A veterinarian who had come to get a test report related to a dog had paid about Rs.90,000 for it and when he had come back after a while due to having misplaced the relevant report, and asked for a copy of it, it had been observed that instead of Rs.90000, the amount included in the receipt had been Rs.9,000.

It had been revealed that she has been committing the related fraud for sometime by entering different prices from the ones mentioned in the receipt issued to the customer.

This cashier has been working as an office assistant in this institution for sometime and later she had succeeded in getting appointed as a cashier after sitting for the required exams.

The employees allege that when a person who worked as a minor employee passes exams and qualifies for a higher position, that person is not given a higher job in the relevant workplace, but this employee had become the cashier of the Veterinary Research Institute itself.