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RAID-1
* Conducted by Crime Branch; Rs 35 lakh seized
NOTES SEIZED
* 1,715 of new Rs 2,000
* 639 of Rs 100
* 42 of Rs 50
* 8 of new Rs 500
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RAID-2
* Conducted by Porvorim Police on Wednesday
NOTES SEIZED
* New Rs 2000 notes amounting to Rs 70 lakh
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Suspecting money laundering activities involving new currencies, Goa police conducted two separate raids in Ponda and Porvorim within 24 hours seizing a total amount of Rs 1.05 crore.
Speaking to The Goan, Superintendent of Police (Crime and North) Karthik Kashyap stated, “We were tipped off about huge hauls of money being transported in new currency notes. The aim is to probe the angle of money laundering and to confirm the source of these massive funds. The amounts in both the cases has been seized under attachment panchnama and both the cases will be handed over to the department of income tax for further probe.”
Police officials are suspecting that the huge amounts of new denominations were being transported to prospective 'customers' in exchange for the demonetised notes of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000. It is suspected that the plan was to exchange the new notes with the demonetized ones at the rate of 70:30. Of this, the 'customer' was to be given only 70 per cent of the value of the old notes with the remainder 30 per cent of the value set as commission.
The first raid was conducted by Crime Branch inspector Vishwesh Karpe in Ponda on Tuesday evening whereby Rs 35 lakh worth notes were seized.
Acting on specific information, the police laid trap for one Farooq Pirzade (34), resident of Ponda and a wholesale fireworks businessman and succeeded in attaching the amount in 1,715 new notes of Rs 2,000, 639 notes of Rs 100, 42 notes of Rs 50 and eight new notes of Rs 500 from the two-wheeler belonging to Pirzade. Another person, Yallappa Ingle, who accompanied Pirzade at the time of the raid was also brought in for questioning.
In his statement recorded on Wednesday, Pirzade has claimed that he had received the money as payment from 10 to 12 people, who are his customers. However, he has been unable to substantiate his claims with supportive documentary evidence.
Meanwhile, it was also learnt that PI Karpe is likely to be issued a note seeking explanation about certain procedural lapses in conducting the raid.
The second raid was conducted by Porvorim Police on Wednesday whereby two persons were detained and an out of Rs 70 lakh was seized in the new denominations of Rs 2,000 notes.
SP Kashyap said that Porvorim Police received a call from a reliable source informing that some persons carrying new currency notes of Rs 2,000 denomination were leaving for Mapusa from a site near the Mall de Goa at Porvorim.
Accordingly, the police was deputed near Mall de Goa in the afternoon and at about 4 pm, the police noticed a scooter (GA-07-V-0991) proceeding from the Vada-Kombda lane in PDA Colony towards Mapusa.
“The police intercepted the scooter and on suspicion, asked the riders to open the scooter under-seat storage, in which bundles of Rs 2,000 notes amounting to Rs 70 lakh were found. The police seized the cash along with the vehicle and took both the riders into custody,” informed SP Kashyap.
The riders were later identified as Ramesh Narvekar from Merces and Siddhu Kappadnawar from Panaji.
"The police have informed the seizure to the Income Tax department and is investigating the source of the seized money,” added Kashyap.
Porvorim PI Paresh Naik informed that the team was formed under sub inspector Vishwajeet Chodanker and deputed them opposite the Mall de Goa in the afternoon.
