KOCHI: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) Court in Kochi on Tuesday sent three accused persons in the case related to smuggling of gold through the diplomatic channel to the agency’s custody for four days. Though NIA had sought custody of prime accused Swapna Suresh, she could not be produced in the court as she had to undergo tests at Thrissur Medical College Hospital.
Sandeep Nair, Muhammad Shafi and Muhammad Ali Ebrahim were produced in the court after NIA sought their custody. They were sent to NIA custody till Friday evening. As far as Swapna is concerned, the court decided to seek the opinion of a medical board constituted to evaluate her health condition and take the necessary step. After complaining of chest pain, the medical board had advised her to undergo angiogram recently. She is currently admitted to Thrissur MCH.
Similarly, NIA had also sought custody of Muhammad Anwar T M. However, he could not be produced in the court due to some clerical mistake at Viyyur Central Jail. He will be produced in the court on Wednesday. Swapna’s counsel submitted that the court had permitted her to meet family members but it was not allowed by jail authorities. The court issued a directive to the jail superintendent in this regard.
The NIA sought the custody of the accused persons after examining the data collected from the mobile phones, laptops and other digital devices seized from them. The data retrieved from the mobile phones and laptops of Swapna and Sandeep alone is 2 TB (2,000 GB).