Kochi: The NIA on Tuesday filed a chargesheet against 20 people before a special court here for their alleged involvement in smuggling 30 kg of gold worth Rs 14.82 crore in diplomatic baggage into Kerala, an official said.
All the accused, including Sarith P S and main accused Swapna Prabha Suresh, both residents of Thiruvananthapuram, have been booked under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), an NIA spokesperson said.
Suresh and Sarith were former employees of the UAE consulate and they allegedly used their past connection to smuggle gold using the diplomatic channel, the official said.
Ramees K T, Jalal A M, Mohammed Shafi P, Saidalavi E, Abdu P T, Rabins Hameed, Muhammedali Ebrahim, Muhammedali, Sharafuddeen K T, Mohammed Shafeeq A, Hamzath Abdulsalam, Samju T M, Hamjad Ali K, Jifsal C V, Aboobacker P, Muhammed Abdu Shameem K V, Abdul Hameed resident and Shamshudeen have also been named in the chargesheet.
The case was registered by the NIA on July 10, 2020 against Sarith, Swapna, Faisal Fareed, Sandeep Nair and others under sections of the UA (P) Act after the seizure of around 30 kg of gold worth Rs 14.82 crore on July 5, 2020 at Trivandrum International Airport by Customs (Preventive) Commissionerate, Kochi, from the import cargo addressed to the Charge D'' Affaires at the Consulate General of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in Thiruvananthapuram.
Absconding accused Suresh and Sandeep were arrested by the NIA from Bengaluru on July 11, 2020.
During investigation, 31 more people, who had conspired and financed gold smuggling besides facilitating the disposal of the contraband and transfer of proceeds thereof to the UAE through hawala channels, for purchasing and smuggling more gold, with the intention of threatening the economic security of India, were arraigned as accused in the case.
05/01/21 PTI/Outlook
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