SOURCE: HT
The Kerala police have sent a report to the National Investigation Agency (NIA) and asked it to investigate the “terror angle” in all major gold smuggling cases in the state, two officials aware of the matter said. The Kerala police suspect that some smugglers and hawala operators have terror links, one of the two officials told HT. Hawala transactions worth over Rs 1,000 crore annually on an average, have been taking place in the state, he added.
The request comes as the NIA took charge of the probe of the seizure of 30 kg of 24-carat gold from Thiruvananthapuram airport on July 5. An attempt was made to smuggle the gold through diplomatic baggage, which according to the Vienna Convention, is not checked by Customs officials.
“Since NIA is investigating the Thiruvananthapuram gold smuggling case under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA), it might want to look at other cases and their link,” a Kerala police officer told HT over the phone, requesting anonymity. “We have given a report to the Centre and NIA on our cases. More reports are being prepared on similar activities.”
On July 10, the NIA filed a First Information Report (FIR) against four persons: P Sarith Kumar, who was arrested by Customs officials on July 5, and three others, Swapna Suresh, Sandip Nair and Fazil Fareed, an alleged smuggler from Ernakulum but based in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and charged them under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA). On July 15, it added one more name to the FIR, an alleged gold smuggler named KT Ramees.
A team arrested Suresh and Nair who have been sent to judicial custody till July 21. They are currently being interrogated by the investigation agency.
The NIA has also approached Interpol for a blue notice against Fareed. A blue notice is issued for additional information about a person’s identity, location, or activities in relation to a crime.
The agency found that Fareed forged the UAE?seal and emblem to ensure diplomatic protection for the baggage.
On Wednesday, Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan’s former principal secretary M Sivasankar was grilled in connection with the smuggling case.
NIA last week said gold smuggling into India from offshore locations threatens the country’s economic stability, national security and amounts to terrorism as per UAPA’s Section 15. In a statement, it added the fresh smuggling case has national and international linkages. NIA cited its initial probe and added it has revealed that the proceeds of smuggled gold could be used for financing terrorism in India.
Apart from NIA and Customs, Research and Analysis Wing and Intelligence Bureau are also coordinating with the agencies to unearth the gold smuggling and hawala networks in Kerala, a second official said in Delhi.
The Customs department has arrested 12 people in relation to gold smuggling and detained four since this case came to light.
