As part of the investigation into the Kerala Gold Smuggling Case under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002, the Directorate of Enforcement (ED) conducted searches at 02 premises in Kerala and 02 premises in Tamil Nadu covering the office and residential premises of Nandu @ Nandagopal – Prop. of KGN Bullion, Samju T.M, Shamsudheen, on April 12, 2023.
Samju T.M.’s statement was captured during the searches, in which he, among other things, confessed to buying 4500 grammes of illegal gold from smuggler Mohammed Shafi to sell to end users through the store owned by his father-in-law Shamsudheen. Seven immovable assets worth Rs. 1.13 Crore and Rs. 27.65 Lakh in gold were discovered and seized during the search process.
As a result of the seizure of 30.245 kg of smuggled gold by Customs (Preventive) at Trivandrum International Airport, which was disguised as diplomatic luggage of the UAE Consulate, Thiruvananthapuram, an ECIR was previously recorded in the Kerala Gold Smuggling Case based on an FIR filed by the National Investigation Agency (NIA), Kochi, under various sections of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967. The suspect Sarith P.S., Smt. Swapna Prabha Suresh and Sandeep Nair were brought into ED custody from 05.08.2020 to 17.08.2020 after being detained by ED on 22.07.2020. On 06.10.2020, a Prosecution Complaint u/s 45 of the PMLA was filed against Sarith P. S., Smt. Swapna Prabha Suresh, and Sandeep Nair based on the inquiry results.
Further inquiry revealed that M. Sivasankar, IAS, the then-Principal Secretary to the Kerala Chief Minister, had also helped the accused individuals smuggle gold. On October 28, 2020, the ED also detained M. Sivasankar, who was later charged as an additional accused. After that, a Provisional Attachment Order was issued on December 23, 2020, which was duly confirmed by the Hon’ble Adjudicating Authority (PMLA), New Delhi, for attaching FDs in bank accounts and cash seized from bank lockers totalling Rs. 1.85 Crore (belonging to Smt. Swapna Suresh, Sandeep Nair, Sarith, and Sadan Kumar, F/o Sarith). On December 24, 2020, a Supplementary Prosecution Complaint was submitted against the accused, including M. Sivasankar.
The proceeds of crime generated by Sarith P. S. and Smt. Swapna Suresh out of the smuggling of gold and commission received was revealed during the ongoing investigation relating to the seizure of smuggled gold by Customs when it was discovered that Sarith P. S. gave Rs. 14.98 lakhs to his cousin Akhil S. for keeping in safe custody. As a result, on September 15, 2021, a Provisional Attachment Order was issued for attaching cash totalling Rs. 14.98 lacks and smuggled gold weighing 30.245 kilogrammes, valued at Rs. 14.82 crores and held in the custody of Cochin Customs. Additionally, the Hon’ble Adjudicating Authority (PMLA), New Delhi, verified the previous attachment. Additional investigation is being conducted.
