Latest news with #SSasidharan
New Indian Express
22-05-2025
- New Indian Express
Vigilance intensifies probe into bribery case against ED officer in Kerala
KOCHI: As it intensifies the probe into the alleged bribery case involving an Enforcement Directorate (ED) officer, the Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau is giving special focus on cyber (read digital) evidence. The VACB officials on Wednesday said they were currently in the evidence collection phase and further action will be based on what they find. 'The investigation is proceeding in phases. We are examining all angles. We are also awaiting reports of the forensic analysis of the electronic devices seized from the accused. The current focus is on cyber-related aspects,' said VACB Ernakulam SP S Sasidharan. ED assistant director Shekar Kumar was booked in connection with a Rs 2-crore bribery case. Three persons, alleged middlemen, have already been arrested for reportedly extorting money from a complainant in exchange for halting an ED investigation.
NDTV
17-05-2025
- NDTV
Kerala Vigilance Charges Probe Agency's Official In Corruption Case
Kochi: A senior official of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) has been booked by the Kerala Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau in a corruption case. The officer, attached to the Kochi unit of the central agency, was booked as the first accused in the corruption case registered as per the complaint of a businessman, VACB sources said. Three persons, including a chartered accountant, have already been arrested in the case for allegedly seeking a bribe of Rs two crore from the businessman not to arraign him in an ED case, they said. As per the remand report submitted by the VACB before the court, the ED official is the key accused in the case. The other accused were arrested on Friday, while the Kochi-based chartered accountant was arrested on Saturday, a senior VACB official said. S Sasidharan, VACB Superintendent, Ernakulam, told reporters here that a detailed investigation is progressing in the case and the ED official was booked based on the statement of the complainant. The accused ED official is yet to be arrested, he said. "The complainant has mentioned the name of the ED official in his complaint. So, he has been named as the prime accused in the FIR. A detailed investigation is to be conducted and more things are to be verified in that aspect," he said. When reporters asked whether the ED official was booked as there was strong evidence against him, the VACB official didn't give any direct reply. If there are clear remarks against anyone in a complaint, that person would be arraigned as accused in the case, the official said. He further said more details could not be divulged at the moment as a probe is underway.
New Indian Express
01-05-2025
- New Indian Express
Kochi corportaion building inspector held while accepting bribe of Rs 50k
KOCHI: The Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau (VACB) on Wednesday arrested a building inspector of the Kochi Corporation while accepting a bribe at Poonurunni. The arrested officer, Swapna, was posted at the Corporation's Vyttila zonal office. According to VACB SP S Sasidharan, the complainant had submitted an application for constructing a building in January. However, Swapna allegedly put the application on hold without providing any valid reason. 'When the applicant approached her, she demanded a bribe of Rs 50,000 to process the file. The complainant then approached us with the information,' Sasidharan said. Following instructions from the VACB, the complainant agreed to meet the officer at Poonurunni to hand over the bribe, using currency notes treated with chemical markers. Swapna was caught red-handed while accepting the bribe, and officials immediately initiated the arrest procedure. She was later produced before the Vigilance Court in Muvattupuzha and remanded in judicial custody. Swapna is the eighth official from the Kochi Corporation to be caught in a bribery case by the VACB.
