MALAPPURAM: Kottakkal police on Thursday launched a probe into the hawala angle after `3.25 crore in unaccounted money was seized from an autorickshaw which overturned at Valiyaparambu in Kottakkal near here in the morning.
The police arrested two persons who tried to escape with the illegal money in the autorickshaw after their accomplices kidnapped its driver in a car. The arrested have been identified as Ismail, 26, and Shafeek, 20, both residents of Tanur.
The police were informed about the money by local residents who noticed Indian currency notes inside the autorickshaw which overturned as the duo tried to flee in the vehicle in a hurry around 8am.
According to the police, it was a planned attempt to snatch the illegal money from the person who was driving the autorickshaw. A gang in a car followed the autorickshaw from Padaparamba. When it reached Valiyaparambu, the gang stopped the autorickshaw and kidnapped its driver in their car while two of them got into the three-wheeler and tried to speed away. In their hurry to escape, the vehicle overturned.
People who witnessed the accident caught hold of the duo and called the police. “We will investigate all angles, including the hawala connection, of the case,” said Kottakkal CI Yusuf C.