KOCHI: In the wee hours of Thursday, the Excise Department arrested Reporter TV managing director and managing editor Anto Augustine from the channel’s office in Kochi in a case related to possession of liquor beyond the permissible limit. The arrest was recorded around 5 am after an Excise team reached the office at about 2.30 am.
Augustine was subsequently taken for a medical examination. The arrest followed the seizure of around 67 litres of liquor from his residence at Vazhavatta in Wayanad during a search by the Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing alleged financial irregularities linked to the proposed Lionel Messi event in Kerala.
An Excise team led by Assistant Commissioner Byju reached the Reporter TV office to take Augustine into custody. After the medical examination, Augustine will be taken to Wayanad and produced before the Bathery Judicial First Class Magistrate Court, the Excise AC said. He also said Augustine is currently the sole accused in the case.
There were tense moments during the arrest as Augustine initially insisted that he be shown the FIR before surrendering. Though the Excise team showed him a digital copy, he sought a hard copy. Perumbavoor Excise Circle Inspector Manoj Kumar subsequently arrived at the office with a copy of the FIR, following which Augustine was taken into custody.
The Excise Department has registered a case against Augustine under Sections 55(A), 55(I) and 58 of the Abkari Act. Officials said the provisions invoked are non-bailable.
The liquor was detected during the SIT search at the Augustine brothers’ family residence in Vazhavatta on Wednesday. The SIT was conducting searches at five locations in Kochi and Wayanad as part of its investigation into alleged financial irregularities surrounding the proposed event involving football star Lionel Messi and the Argentina team.
The Excise Department took over the liquor-related proceedings after being alerted about the seizure. The department is investigating the source of the liquor and the circumstances under which it was stored at the residence.
