Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala gold smuggling case key accused Swapna Suresh and P S Sarith have given statement to the Customs Department that a bag containing money was given to them at the house of a politician who is holding a prominent position in the state and the money was subsequently handed over to a high official of UAE Consulate.

The accused had earlier given a statement alleging that this particular leader was involved in smuggling of dollars. According to Swapna she was asked to come to a flat in Pettah in Thiruvananthapuram. When she along with Sarith reached the flat located on the fourth storey of the building, the top leader was listening to a ghazal in a room. From there, they went to the official residence of the leader in Swapna's vehicle. In his statement, Sarith said the bag brought by the leader from his official residence was received by Swpana. She handed over the bag to him and asked to go and give it to the high official in the Consulate. Swapna has corroborated Sarith's statement.

The flat in Pettah belongs to a Malayali couple based in London. The customs is in the process of probing as to who was using the flat when the money exchanged hands.

Meanwhile, Swapna and Suresh will file an application to get a copy of the 164 CrPC statement given by them before the magistrate.