ED interrogates Bineesh Kodiyeri

Kochi: The Enforcement Directorate probing the money trail in the Kerala gold smuggling case on Wednesday interrogated Bineesh Kodiyeri, son of Kerala CPI(M) secretary Kodiyeri Balakrishnan, for over 11 hours, even as it filed a report in a court here, alleging a link between the accused in Bengaluru drug case and in the gold smuggling case.

Bineesh, who appeared before the ED officials here at around 10 AM, was allowed to leave the office at 10 PM after completing his interrogation. Emerging from the ED office, Bineesh refused to speak to the media. Though he was summoned for interrogation after charges were leveled against him for his close links with some members of a drug racket busted by the Narcotics Control Bureau in Bengaluru recently, it is not clear on which issue he was interrogated by the ED today.

Earlier in the day, the ED told a special court here that the accused in the Bengaluru drug case were suspected to have assisted those allegedly involved in the sensational gold smuggling case in Kerala. The ED made the submission in the Special Court for PMLA cases here while seeking an extension of judicial remand of three accused in the gold smuggling case, including Sarith P S, Sandeep Nair, and Swapna Suresh.

“Further investigation revealed that the accused in the Bengaluru drug trafficking case registered by the Narcotics Control Bureau, Bengaluru is suspected to have assisted the accused in the gold smuggling case”, the ED submitted in the court.

The central agency said the NCB, Bengaluru, has been requested to share with it, details of the drug seizure case. It said one of the high-profile persons who is alleged to be linked to the case is being interrogated.

In addition to this, more than 20 people who are involved in the gold smuggling case are to be investigated, it said. The central agency summoned Bineesh for interrogation following charges of links between a key accused in the Kerala gold smuggling case and a prime accused in the Bengaluru drug seizure case. Earlier, the youth wing of the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) had alleged that Bineesh Kodiyeri has close links with some members of the Bengaluru drug racket busted by the Narcotics Control Bureau in Bengaluru recently.

Youth League General Secretary P K Firos had alleged that Bineesh had invested money in a hotel business launched by the drug case accused Mohammed Anoop in Kammanahalli in 2015 and demanded a comprehensive investigation into it.

Bineesh has said he knew Anoop and his family and the latter had borrowed money from him and some others for starting the restaurant business in Bengaluru some years ago. He had also said he was shocked after hearing the news about Anoop”s alleged involvement in drug trafficking.