A city-based businessman who collected ₹40 lakh as payments from his clients last week and kept it in his car in the custody of his driver for the past 20 years, and stepped out to visit a temple in south Calcutta, got the shock of his life when he could not find the car and the driver after stepping out of the temple.

The driver was arrested at a hotel in Bhubaneswar on Sunday. The stolen amount has been recovered, police said.

The incident was reported on June 19.

The complainant reported the theft at Rabindra Sarobar police station, following
which Kolkata Police tracked down the missing car in south Calcutta last week.

However, the driver, Ramkewal Sharma, was missing along with the money.

“The complainant had kept the money in the custody of the driver. The driver, who is from Uttar Pradesh, was trusted by the family members and had guarded his employer’s money on several occasions. However, this time, he allegedly cheated his employer and stole the money,” said an officer of Rabindra Sarobar police station.

“During the investigation, and acting upon source information, the accused was arrested from a hotel at Buddha Nagar, Bhubaneswar, on Sunday. A search revealed he had with him ₹38.9 lakh,” said the officer.

Sharma was produced before a court in Bhubaneswar on Sunday and brought
to Calcutta on transit remand.

Sharma has been charged with theft and criminal breach of trust, the police said.