Thrissur: Probe traces money flow to 16 a/cs

Thrissur: An inquiry handed over to Crime Branch from the local police here on a cheque bounce case against an insurance collection agent in Dubai has opened the window to money laundering in which sixteen different accounts in different banks received funds from a money exchange in the UAE.

Non-Resident Indian businessman and partner of Al Sahara Insurance Brokers LLC in Dubai Badushah N. S. of Nattika here had filed a complaint against his employee who is a resident of Pazhambuzha Temple Road in Chittilappilly over a cheque bounce of Rs 40 lakh earlier this year with Peramangalam Circle Inspector.

The CI allegedly demanded a bribe, and as per the complaint to Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and DGP Loknath Behera, the case was transferred to crime branch and CB's assistant commissioner Babu K. Thomas here has been actively inquiring the case for the past two months.

"With the help of my partner in Insurance firm Lt. Colonel Mohamed Juma Aman Obaid of Dubai Police, I managed to get as many as 16 transaction details from Al Ansari Money Exchange in the UAE in which the  employee who cheated me by giving a Rs 40 lakh cheque that bounced has sent money to 16 different accounts in Kerala.

 It has also been found that in the most reputed banks in Kerala this employee, who is the accused in the case and fled from UAE in January, has more than one NRE account, which is illegal," Mr Badushah told reporters here on Thursday showing the documents he collected from the money exchanges.

"The Emirates ID of this employee is used to send money to all these accounts as per the documents, and later the money from banks have been routed to co-operative banks, farmers' banks, rural banks and a chit firm as deposits by this employee and his wife. All these details I collected have been handed over to the CB in Thrissur," he said.

Investigation officer Babu K. Thomas said that the focus was on the Rs 40 lakh cheque bounce case and the broader issue of alleged money laundering was not at present before the investigation team.