ED raids 15 locations in iron ore export case linked to Congress MLA Satish Sail

KARWAR: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Wednesday launched massive searches at 15 locations across Karnataka, Goa, and Mumbai in connection with a money laundering investigation involving Karnataka Congress MLA Satish Krishna Sail and others.

Satish Sail, who represents Karwar Assembly constituency in Uttara Kannada district, is accused of illegally exporting seized iron ore from Belekeri port in Karwar. According to officials, the consignment, originally impounded by Forest officials, was illicitly shipped overseas, causing a loss of approximately Rs 38 crore to the state exchequer.

Investigators believe the actual value of the illegally exported ore could run into hundreds of crores. The raids are part of ED’s probe under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), stemming from earlier forest and mining department cases.

The agency is scrutinising financial transactions, property records, and links to alleged accomplices in the illegal mining and export network.

On Tuesday, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) searched nine premises across Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Maharashtra in connection with a money laundering case against the Sahara group, the agency said. The ED’s Kolkata zonal office conducted the searches at the premises of suspects located at Uttar Pradesh’s Ghaziabad and Lucknow; Rajasthan’s Ganganagar; and Maharashtra’s Mumbai on August 11 under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002.

“Entities searched were related to various land and share transactions with entities of the Sahara group”, said the ED in a statement. The ED initiated an investigation based on three First Information Reports (FIRs) registered under Sections 420 and 120B of the Indian Penal Code, 1860, against Humara India Credit Cooperative Society Ltd (HICCSL) and others by police in Odisha, Bihar, and Rajasthan.

Over 500 FIRs have been registered against various Sahara Group entities, with more than 300 involving scheduled offences under the PMLA, alleging large-scale cheating of depositors through forced redeposits and denial of maturity payments. (ANI)