Kasaragod: Police investigating the Rs 4.67-crore financial fraud and robbery at the CPM-controlled Karadka Agriculturist Welfare Cooperative Society in Kasaragod has a new problem.
According to a complaint filed by one Aboobacker, three men threatened to frame him in the cooperative society case if he did not pay up Rs 3.5 lakh. The men reportedly told him they were taking the money for police officers investigating the case.
Bekal Station House Officer, Inspector Shine, said Aboobacker paid the money fearing he would be made an accused in the case.
Based on his complaint, Bekal Police have booked 'Tiger' Sameer of Kottikulam in Udma panchayat, and Rashid and Ismail of Bekal for extortion under Section 308 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, said the officer.
Police said Aboobacker was not linked to the society. But police arrested the accused in the case from his car and impounded the vehicle, too. The three accused used a car as the link to allegedly threaten Aboobacker, said the inspector.
The fraud, reported to police in May, was allegedly committed by Ratheeshan K (38), the secretary of the society.
The case was first investigated by Adhur Police and then by the District Crime Branch. The two agencies arrested six people in connection with the case: the main two, Ratheeshan and Jabbar Manjakandi, a real estate broker from Thana in Kannur town; Ahammed Basheer, an IUML leader and ward member of Pallikkara grama panchayat; Anil Kumar of Nellikkat near Kanhangad; Abdul Gafoor of Parakalai in Kodom-Bellur grama panchayat of Kasaragod; and C Nabeel of Arakkinar in Kozhikode.
Police said Jabbar Manjakandi planned the crime and Ratheeshan executed it.
According to the complaint, Ratheeshan defrauded the bank in three ways: one, he took gold loans worth Rs 1.68 crore in the names of his close relatives and fictitious persons without pledging gold jewellery; two, he diverted Rs 1.96 crore of cash credit from Kerala Bank; and three, when the CPM found out of the irregularities and gave him time to return the money, he robbed jewellery worth Rs 1.12 crore on May 9.
Ratheeshan, a member of the party's Karadka Local Committee, walked into the society during lunch break, threatened two female staffers and walked out with gold jewellery pledged by 41 customers, said CPM leaders.
Despite the complaint, the police have not pressed robbery charges against Ratheeshan, yet.
Nabeel is accused of laundering the money siphoned from the bank. The other accused dabbled in real estate. At the end of June, the investigation was handed over to the Economic Offence Wing of the State Crime Branch. Since then the case has gone cold with little progress.
