Haifa Ex-Bank Clerk Indicted for Stealing 160,000 Shekels from Elderly Clients
A former bank clerk in Haifa has been indicted for allegedly stealing 160,000 shekels from elderly customers, including a recently deceased client, using forged ATM cards.
The Haifa District Prosecutor's Office has filed an indictment at the Magistrate's Court in Haifa against a former employee of the First International Bank of Israel's local branch. She is accused of stealing approximately 160,000 shekels from bank customers, including an account belonging to a client who passed away shortly before the funds were withdrawn.
According to the indictment, the defendant worked at the branch between 2019 and 2022. During her tenure, she allegedly ordered ATM cards for elderly clients in their 80s without their knowledge. She then forged confirmation forms claiming the clients had received the cards, using them to withdraw money directly from their accounts.
In one specific case, the former clerk ordered four cash withdrawal cards for a 75-year-old female customer, using them to siphon 143,000 shekels across 43 separate transactions. To cover her tracks, prosecutors state she transferred funds from the victim's savings account to her current account without consent, forging the client's signature on bank documents.
In another instance, the defendant issued an ATM card for a customer who had died roughly two weeks prior, subsequently withdrawing 4,000 shekels from the deceased individual's account. The scheme unraveled following customer complaints lodged with the institution, which triggered a police investigation. The defendant was questioned under caution and her employment at the bank was immediately terminated. The indictment charges her with multiple counts of theft by a power of attorney, false entry in corporate documents, forgery, and aggravated use of a forged document.
