BERHAMPUR/BHUBANESWAR: Berhampur Vigilance sleuths on Saturday arrested an Executive Engineer of Rural Works division on charges of amassing wealth disproportionate to his known sources of income. The Executive Engineer, Sirish Chandra Sahoo, is posted in Mohana block of Gajapati district.
Sources said the sleuths intercepted a Scorpio vehicle near Bhejiput toll gate in Ganjam district in which Sahoo was going to Cuttack with his wife Swarna Lata. During a search of the vehicle, Vigilance officials stumbled upon Rs 1,55,000 cash. Though Sahoo stated that he had withdrawn the money from SBI, Mohana branch, on verification it was found to be false. The cash was seized.
The three-storey building of Sahoo at Plot No 1591, CDA, Sector-10, Cuttack was searched and assets worth Rs 1.42 crore recovered.
The Government quarters as well Sahoo’s office at Mohana is yet to be searched. It is suspected that the money was collected illegally from different private parties involved in various public works, sources said. “Sahoo’s triple storey house at CDA has been estimated at Rs 1.10 crore. Besides, he has bank deposits of more than Rs 20 lakh,” a Vigilance official said.