The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Tuesday interrogated ‘lottery king’ Santiago Martin at its office here. It was the first time that the CBI quizzed Martin in the lottery scam.
According to sources in CBI, Martin appeared at the office following summonses sent by the CBI. The interrogation started in the morning and continued till late evening.
Investigation teams from Kochi and Thiruvananthapuram units interrogated him.
“Santiago was interrogated to get more clarification on an agreement signed by the Bhutan and Sikkim governments with the company owned by Martin to distribute their lotteries in the country. He was to be quizzed over prize distribution and officials involved in the scam,” the CBI sources said.
However, the CBI till the report went to press had ruled out his arrest. Officials said if Martin does not cooperate with the investigation team, he would be arrested.
There were 32 cases in the lottery scam in which Santiago Martin and his associate John Kennedy were involved. However, in the last few months, the CBI had filed closure reports before the Ernakulam Chief Judicial Magistrate in 22 cases of the 32 cases registered.
According to the CBI, 13 cases investigated by the Thiruvananthapuram unit and nine cases by the Kochi unit had been recommended to be closed.
The CBI said no forgery was involved in the scam. The fraud lay in the deal signed by the governments of Sikkim and Bhutan and Martin, it added. The interrogation will continue on Wednesday.