Thiruvananthapuram: The Enforcement Directorate team probing the gold smuggling through diplomatic baggage in Thiruvananthapuram international airport has submitted chargesheet in the case on Monday. The chargesheet revealed that alleged "kingpin" Ramees KT has disclosed the names of the people who are involved in the crime.
Ramees was arrested in the case by the federal agency on April 5. He is currently in judicial custody and lodged in a Kerala jail.
"Ramees revealed the names of various investors who sponsored the gold smuggling, including persons from Dubai, as well as the names of some beneficiaries. The investigation conducted revealed that 27 accused persons were involved in the offense of money laundering, and they have now been chargesheeted," the official said.
The prosecution complaint, the third in the case, has been filed before a special Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) court in Kerala, and 27 people have been named as accused, the agency said in a statement.
Ramees has been confronted with more than 2,000 voice memos of Telegram chats between him and his associates involved in the gold smuggling case that took place through the Thiruvananthapuram international airport, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) said.
The ED, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) and the Customs Department are conducting separate investigations into the racket that was busted with the seizure of gold worth about Rs 15 crore from the UAE Consulate's diplomatic baggage at the Thiruvananthapuram airport on July 5, 2020.
Former employees of the UAE Consulate in Kerala Sarith PS and Swapna Suresh, apart from Sandeep Nair and IAS officer Sivasankar (former principal secretary to the Kerala chief minister), were arrested by the ED in the case earlier and two chargesheets have been filed against them.
The total value of attachment of properties in the case, till date, is Rs 21.50 crore, the ED said.
(With PTI inputs)
