Hawala racket busted in WB, 20 cr recovered so far

It is estimated that around Rs 4,190 crore was laundered by the underworld network to Pakistan.

According to Daily Mail, Dawood’s D-Company is suspected of having a role in the racket.

Sources say, the trio allegedly run a fake lottery business in West Bengal and Tamil Nadu.

The alleged kingpins, identified as S Nagaarjuna and Santiago Martin, are under the scanner of the agencies. One such company, “Future Plus Enterprise Private Limited”, has very vague “wholesale” business activities. Their links in the UAE and D-Company are being investigated.

Officials said the modus operandi was simple; they ran fake lottery schemes, both online and off-line, using these as fronts for money laundering. More than 20 cases have been filed against him in Kerala, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu.

Yesterday, the IT department had seized over Rs 45 crore cash, stashed in gunny bags and almirahs, in Kolkata and adjoining areas as part of a crackdown against lottery and hawala dealers suspected to be channeling illegal funds for Dawood Ibrahim gang. Intelligence agencies are gathering more information on these companies.

The raids were conducted in Sahapur and Sarat Bose Road, both in South Kolkata. This apart, seizures were made at Teesta Distributor and Ananda Mangal Square in Siliguri.

They said tax officials were also searching a few locations in Siliguri in this connection.

A senior IB officer told IBNS: After interrogating X Alexander, who was detained earlier on Thursday, one of the main accused S Nagarjan has been detained from a flat at Hazra area on Kolkata last night. The victims are then provided with a bank account number and asked to deposit processing charges to claim the lottery amount.

The Indian agents “hire” bank accounts and ATM cards from different individuals by paying them some amount in return. Details available with the intelligence agency show that 18 bank accounts in Andhra Pradesh were also hired to mask the illegal activities. Sources said the nexus is well organised and convinces gullible people who easily fall prey to its trap.