Thodupuzha: A former government official who had been absconding to avoid serving a sentence in a bribery case was arrested by the Idukki Vigilance Unit on Tuesday.

The accused, MG Ajayakumar (68), a former Devikulam Block Development Officer and a native of Amaravila in Thiruvananthapuram, was taken into custody from his residence in Amaravila.

According to Vigilance officials, Ajayakumar had gone into hiding despite both the Kerala High Court and the Supreme Court dismissing his appeals against the conviction. He had failed to appear before the Vigilance Court to undergo the sentence.

The case originated from a complaint filed by a resident of Pooppara in Idukki district. Ajayakumar was accused of demanding a bribe of ₹5,000 to release the final instalment of funds sanctioned under a housing scheme in the complainant’s wife's name. He was caught red-handed by Vigilance officials while accepting the bribe.

Following the trial, the Muvattupuzha Vigilance Court found him guilty and sentenced him to one year of rigorous imprisonment, imposing a fine of ₹20,000.

Ajayakumar subsequently challenged the verdict before the High Court, which upheld the conviction and sentence. His Special Leave Petition filed before the Supreme Court was also dismissed. Despite exhausting all legal remedies, he failed to surrender to the court and remained at large.

Acting on a tip-off, a Vigilance team reached Thiruvananthapuram on Tuesday and arrested him from his residence. He was later produced before the Muvattupuzha Vigilance Court and, after completing legal formalities, was remanded to Viyyur Central Prison.

The conviction in the case was pronounced in 2017, while the final appeal was dismissed by the court approximately two months ago.