KOCHI: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) team probing the gold smuggling case has reached the UAE. The team led by an SP-rank officer reached Dubai two days ago and is trying to get access to diplomats who worked in the UAE Consulate in Thiruvananthapuram. Sources in the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) said the Indian Embassy is coordinating with the agencies in the UAE to assist the NIA investigation abroad. It is the first NIA case registered in Kerala in which its team has gone abroad for the probe.
“The NIA and Indian Embassy are trying to get access to the diplomats who had worked in the consulate, including charge d’affaires Rashed Khamis Al Shemeili. Their statements are vital. The NIA team will be staying in the UAE for a week and conduct the probe,” said a highly-placed officer in the MHA.
The diplomatic bag containing gold was addressed to Rashed Al Shemeili though he had stated that he was not aware that gold was inside the consignment. However, accused Swapna Suresh and Sandeep Nair had claimed that the smuggling was done with the knowledge of Rashed Al Shemeili and a commission of $1,000-$1,500 was paid to him and other diplomats. Rashed Al Shemeili returned to the UAE last month.
Similarly, the NIA will also interrogate Faisal Fareed and Rabins Hameed, two accused persons currently in the UAE. Faisal allegedly used to send the gold in diplomatic baggage and Rabins used to procure gold and operated hawala channels for funding the smuggling. “After investigating the duo’s role in the smuggling, the agency will try to extradite them to India. More suspects in the UAE have to be traced and interrogated,” a source said.
The NIA will also be sharing the information it collects to the Customs and Enforcement Directorate (ED) which have also registered separate cases of gold smuggling. “The investigation abroad is vital. In no other smuggling case, agencies could conduct a probe abroad. The probe abroad will help us in the investigation of other smuggling cases as well,” a Customs officer said.
Bail verdict postponed
The Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate (Economic Offences) Court on Wednesday, postponed the verdict in accused Swapna’s bail petition to Thursday. The court, which heard the bail pleas of accused Said Alavi and Samju, will give a verdict on the pleas on Thursday.
NIA officer probing gold smuggling case wins award
Kochi: A key member of the NIA team probing the gold smuggling case is among the 121 winners of the Union Home Minister’s Medal for Excellence in Investigation this year, said an MHA release on Wednesday.
C Radhakrishnan Pillai, a DySP with the NIA’s Kochi unit, is the chief investigation officer of the smuggling case. He was also involved in the probe into the murder of a police personnel at the Kerala-Tamil Nadu border and the Wagamon SIMI camp case. NIA Additional SP A P Shoukkathali from the Kochi unit is also among the winners. Seven police officers from the Kerala Police also bagged the award. They are ACP CD Sreenivasan, DySP Girish P Sarathy, DySP KM Devasia, SP B Krishnakumar, Inspector Premachandran K E, SP KE Baiju and SI Johnson George.