Published 17:50 IST, July 28th 2020
Kerala Gold smuggling: Swapna Suresh, Sandeep Nair sent to five-day Customs custody
In a significant development in the Kerala gold smuggling case, accused Swapna Suresh and Sandeep Nair have been sent to five-day Customs custody
In a significant development in the Kerala gold smuggling case, accused Swapna Suresh and Sandeep Nair have been sent to five-day Customs custody. This comes after the Chief Judicial Magistrate Court of Economic Offences heard the petition by the Customs Department on Tuesday and agreed to grant them the custody of the duo till August 1.
While granting the custody, Chief Judicial Magistrate has directed Customs to keep Swapna Suresh under the surveillance of a lady Customs officer, not below the rank of Superintendent. This comes after, Swapna Suresh earlier claimed in the court that she had suffered mental torture in custody and had given her statements to Customs Officials 'under pressure.' The court has also directed Customs to allow her to interact with her children at least by electronic means in the supervision of an Investigation Officer over this 5-day period.
While multiple agencies have been probing the gold smuggling case, the Customs has been on the forefront of the probe since the time the UAE diplomatic bag was recovered by them on July 5. Even though the Customs and the NIA have been conducting separate investigations, sources reveal that the two agencies are cross-checking statements in what they feel can be an essential test on the credibility of the accused's statements.
Kerala gold smuggling case
On July 5, Customs officials seized 30 kg of gold worth Rs.15 crore at the Thiruvananthapuram Airport from a diplomatic cargo addressed to a person in the UAE Consulate. Sarith Kumar, who worked at the UAE Consulate was arrested in this regard. Reportedly, he told the Customs about the role of Swapna Suresh, an ex-Consulate employee now working as the manager of the Kerala State Information Technology Infrastructure Limited.
The case took a political turn after photos with Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan surfaced. It has been alleged that Suresh has links with the CM and has been seen with him at parties when she was working at the UAE Consulate. The NIA had taken over the case after Centre's nod on July 9. The investigative agency will probe whether the gold smuggling was linked to activities detrimental to national security.
Updated 17:50 IST, July 28th 2020