THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: In a breakthrough in the sensational gold smuggling case through the diplomatic channel, the chartered accountant of M Sivasankar, former principal secretary to the chief minister, is believed to have told the Customs that it was Sivasankar who had advised second accused Swapna Suresh to use the bank locker facility. The facility was used by Swapna to stash away money and gold jewellery, investigators had found.
The chartered accountant gave his statement to the Customs after he was taken to his office here by sleuths to check the financial transactions of Sivasankar. He reportedly told the Customs that the locker facility was opened using a joint account opened in the name of Swapna and himself. He was quizzed by the Customs unit in Thiruvananthapuram to verify Sivasankar’s statement pertaining to his income. The interrogation took place on Thursday night and he was let off soon. The chartered accountant has been managing Sivasankar’s finances for several years.
According to a source, the chartered accountant’s statement against Sivasankar has given investigators a breakthrough in the case since his involvement in the gold smuggling case had not come to light so far. Though Sivasankar was quizzed by both the Customs and NIA, he had not disclosed this to sleuths.
Evidence collection
As part of evidence collection in the ongoing probe, the National Investigation Agency on Friday took K T Ramees, accused in the gold smuggling case, to the house of third accused Sandeep Nair. Ramees was also taken to Sivasankar’s apartment near the state Secretariat late on Friday. Besides, he was
taken to Swapna’s Ambalamukku residence and two high-end hotels.