NEW DELHI: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Sunday raided the residence of a senior Kolkata Police officer and a local businessman as part of a money laundering investigation into an alleged criminal extortion network, officials said.
Sleuths of the federal agency reached the Ballygunge residence of Deputy Commissioner Shantanu Sinha Biswas early in the morning and simultaneously raided a second property linked to him, along with premises associated with Jay Kamdar, managing director of Sun Enterprise, in the Behala district.
Kamdar was taken to the agency’s local office for questioning. Biswas, who serves as chief coordinator and nodal officer of the West Bengal and Kolkata Police welfare committee, was not present at the time of the searches, an ED official said.
The agency is probing links connected with Biswajit Podder, also known as “Sona Pappu”, a suspect accused of attempted murder, extortion and Arms Act violations.
The ED alleged that Podder led an organised criminal syndicate that generated illegal funds through extortion, with proceeds allegedly routed to individuals linked to the case.
The ED had conducted an earlier round of searches on April 1, seizing Rs 1.47 crore in cash, gold and silver jewellery valued at Rs 67.64 lakh, and a country-made revolver. Podder, also wanted in connection with a violent incident near Golpark in south Kolkata, is absconding.
The role of Biswas had allegedly been questionable in relation to investigations into illegal coal mining, the Sona Pappu network, and alleged irregularities in NRI quota medical college admissions. He had been summoned by the ED’s Delhi office in the coal mining case but did not appear.