Karuvannur bank scam: ED attaches assets worth Rs 57.75 cr

Kochi: In a major development in the probe into the Karuvannur Co-operative Bank scam, the Directorate of Enforcement (ED) has attached assets worth Rs 57.75 crore under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 on Friday.

In a press release issued on Friday, the central agency said the assets belonging to suspects and accused, including the four arrested, were seized.

Assets of Anil Kumar KB, Abdul Nazar, Abdul Gafoor, Gopalakrishnan, Pradeep KK, Rajeevan CM, Sunil Kumar KD, Amina Paliparambil, Paulson AJ, Ramesh PV, Davi Varghese, Anil Subash, Jilse CK, Satheeshkumar P and Aravindakshan PR were attached. Among these 15 people, Jilse C K, Satheeshkumar P and Aravindakshan P R are accused in the case and others are loan defaulters.

Paulson A J is among the three persons who were given a loan of Rs 50 lakh each by mortgaging accountant Jilse's property. According to ED's remand report, Paulson had not repaid a rupee on the loan and now owes Rs 74.47 lakh to the bank.

As per the official communique, 117 land and buildings in Kerala, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu, 11 Vehicles, fixed deposits and credit balances in 92 bank accounts were attached. With this, the total amount of the assets attached in this case touched Rs 87.75 Crore.

ED launched a probe into the controversial scam worth Rs 150 crore based on the FIR registered by the Kerala Police. The scam came to light in 2021 and the Crime Branch have registered more than 16 FIRs in Thrissur district.

ED investigation has revealed that loans were illegally sanctioned and disbursed to the accused and their benamis from the bank without any sufficient collaterals as part of a systematic conspiracy.

The central agency also found that bogus loans sanctioned by the bank on the same property multiple times without the knowledge of members of the society. Investigation has also revealed that benami loans were sanctioned to non-members against inflated property valuations in the names of other members and such loan funds were siphoned off and laundered by the accused beneficiaries.

In August and September, ED conducted searches at 20 locations including the scam-hit co-operative bank in Irinjalakuda, Thrissur and also conducted five surveys in related other cooperative banks.

ED has so far arrested four people including the main accused Satheesh Kumar P,   senior accountant Jilse C K, a society member and agent Kiran P P and Wadakkanchery municipal councillor Aravindakshan P R under the provisions of the PMLA.

ED had earlier attached the properties commission agent Bijoy A K worth Rs 30 crore including a resort in Thekkady. ED found that he had invested the loans he illegally took from the bank in the resort.