The Directorate of Enforcement (ED) arrested K K Abraham, former President of the Pulpally Service Cooperative Bank, Wayanad, in connection with an ongoing investigation into a money laundering case of fraud that occurred at the Pulpally Service Cooperative Bank in Pullpally, Wayanad. As President of the bank, K K Abraham played a crucial role in authorizing numerous loans by overvaluing the properties of the applicants. The ED launched an inquiry based on an FIR filed by the Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau (VACB), Wayanad, Kerala, against members of the Pulpally Service Cooperative Bank’s Governing Body and bank personnel.
The ED investigation revealed that bank officials and members of its governing body sanctioned enhanced loans without the consent or knowledge of the loan applicants by overvaluing the properties offered as collateral, with the excess amount going to Sajeevan Kollappallil (Private Person). The applicants did not repay the loans, resulting in a total loss of Rs.5.62 crore to the Pulpally Service Cooperative Bank. The proceeds of crime, in the form of an inflated loan, were put in Sajeevan Kollappallil’s bank account at Pulpally Service Cooperative Bank, Pulpally, and then withdrawn in cash and siphoned off. Sajeevan Kollapallil was detained by the ED on September 26, 2023, and is currently in judicial detention.
The ED inquiry further found that Sajeevan Kollapallil used the stated PoC for ginger growing in Karnataka, where K.K. Abraham agreed to a profit share of 10% with no investment. During the inquiry, unexplained cash deposits in K K Abraham’s bank account and transfers of monies from Sajeevan’s account to his bank account were discovered.
K K Abraham was arrested on November 7, 2012, for intentionally assisting Sajeevan Kollappallil in acquiring and utilizing the PoC, hence committing the offense of money laundering as specified in Section 3 of the PMLA, 2002, punishable under Section 4. On November 7, 2023, he will appear before the Hon’ble Special Court, PMLA Kozhikode. The Hon’ble Court has awarded ED custody for two days on November 8, 2023. Additional research is being conducted.
