KOCHI: The customs probing the case of smuggling of US dollars out of the country by the former finance head of the UAe Consulate in Thiruvananthapuram will question drivers of the consulgeneral and admin attaché on Monday. The customs has issued notices to both drivers to appear for interrogation at its office in Kochi. however, the officials did not confirm media reports aired on Friday that Speaker P Sreeramakrishnan would be summoned for questioning in the case.
That will be decided only after the interrogation of the two drivers. The notices to the drivers were issued following a confession statement given by accused persons Swapna Suresh and Sarith P S who were former employees of the consulate. “Swapna and Sarith had confessed that both the consul- general and admin attaché also smuggled out currencies when they travelled from Thiruvananthapuram to the UAe. Both had arranged US dollars from people in Thiruvananthapuram.
Their drivers will be aware of the persons from whom the foreign currencies were arranged. It has been found that on the direction of the consulgeneral, pieces of baggage were collected by his driver from some persons in Thiruvananthapuram on several occasions. Their drivers can reveal the persons who supported the illegal activities by diplomats and foreign nationals who worked at the consulate,” a customs official said.