Chandigarh, March 13 -- Chandigarh Police have recovered a Range Rover allegedly belonging to prime suspect Vikram Wadhwa in connection with the Rs.116-crore fraud involving funds of the Chandigarh Municipal Corporation (MC), parked in accounts at IDFC First Bank. However, Wadhwa, who investigators believe played a key role in the conspiracy, remains absconding. The scam, as per police, appears to have been executed in a manner where the cheques issued by the MC for creating fixed deposits were allegedly never recorded in the official banking system of the IDFC branch. Instead, investigators suspect the funds were diverted to businesses linked to Wadhwa, making it appear on paper as though the payments had been made by the MC directly to these companies. Sources in the investigation said the economic offences wing (EOW) has so far traced a money trail involving nearly 2,400 transactions, indicating extensive layering of funds. According to the preliminary probe, the accused allegedly routed the money through multiple purchases and payments to various businesses, including jewellery stores and other vendors. Police are now analysing these transfers to reconstruct the complete trail of funds and identify beneficiaries. The case surfaced after the MC attempted to transfer funds from Chandigarh Smart City Limited bank accounts to its own accounts. During the process, officials discovered that fixed deposit receipts (FDRs) worth about Rs.116.84 crore issued at the Sector-32 branch of IDFC First Bank were allegedly fake, prompting the civic body to file a complaint with the police. According to investigators, the suspected irregularities took place between March 2025 and March 2026 and were linked to financial transactions routed through the bank branch. Police have booked the then bank manager and others on charges of fraud and criminal conspiracy. After the Chandigarh Renewable Energy and Science & Technology Promotion Society (CREST) flagged financial irregularities of around over Rs.75.16 crore with IDFC bank on March 10, police on Thursday registered a case. The FIR was registered at the Economic Offences police station, Sector 17 following a complaint filed by the project director of CREST on behalf of the organisation's chief executive officer. The case has been registered against Abhay Kumar, Seema Dhiman and Ribhav Rishi, employees of IDFC First Bank, along with other unidentified persons posted at the bank's Sector-32 branch in Chandigarh. Officials said the alleged irregularities came to light during a reconciliation of CREST's financial records with the original bank statements provided by the branch. During the verification, 303 unauthorised withdrawals and deposits were identified in CREST's bank accounts....