ED arrests Mining baron Sekhar Reddy in money laundering case

Chennai: Nearly three months after CBI arrested him on charges of exchanging several crores worth of demonetised currencies, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) arrested industrialist and sand mining baron J Sekhar Reddy in connection with a money laundering case. Based on the FIR filed by the CBI in connection with seizure of old and new currencies worth several crores in December last year, the ED registered a case against Mr. Reddy and his associate Sreenivasulu under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).

Mr Reddy was arrested late last night and produced before a Magistrate at his residence and remanded in Judicial custody till March 28. His associate was also said to have come under the ED scanner, sources said. Reddy was earlier arrested by the CBI and was released on conditional bail a couple of days back. The ED filed a criminal complaint against Reddy and others based on the FIR filed by the CBI after the I-T department raided his residential and office premises and that of two of his associates and seized Rs 131 crore cash, including Rs 34 crore in new Rs 2,000 currency, and 177 kg gold and property documents worth several crores on December eight last year.

After Sekhar Reddy, and Sreenivasulu Reddy were arrested on December 21 in connection with the seizure of currencies, three of their other associates Premkumar, Rathinam and Ramachandran were arrested the next day after the IT department officials also raided their residential and office premises. Based on the evidences gathered and documents seized from the residential and office premises of Sekhar Reddy and his associates IT officials also raided the residences of former Tamil Nadu Chief Secretary P Rama Mohana Rao and seized incriminating documents, cash and gold jewellery. They also raided his office chamber at the State Secretariat and at the residential and business premises of his son Vivek Papisetty and other family members. (UNI)