MP hawala loot case: FIR registered against 11 cops; SDOP arrested

Seoni (MP), Oct 14 (PTI) The Madhya Pradesh police have registered a first information report (FIR) against 11 cops in connection with the looting of Rs 1.45 crore hawala money being transported to Maharashtra last week, and arrested one of them, a sub-divisional officer of police (SDOP), on Tuesday, an official said.

On the directives of Chief Minister Mohan Yadav, an FIR was registered for the crime that occurred in Seoni district on October 8, and SDOP Pooja Pandey has been arrested, the official said.

He said a case has been registered under sections 310(2) dacoity, 126(2) wrongful restraint, 140(3) kidnapping/abduction and 61(2) criminal conspiracy of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).

The cops have been accused of looting Rs 1.45 crore of hawala money, which was being sent to Maharashtra in a four-wheeler after assaulting its driver.

The alleged crime came to light on October 9, after the driver and the businessman, who had sent the money, approached the police, prompting Inspector General of Police (Jabalpur) Pramod Verma to order a probe.

Madhya Pradesh Director General of Police (DGP) Kailash Makwana issued an order suspending SDOP Pandey based on the report of the IG Jabalpur.

Seoni Superintendent of Police (SP) Sunil Kumar Mehta told PTI that during a checking operation on the night of October 8, the Bandol police station in-charge and the staff from the office of the SDOP intercepted a four-wheeler in the Siladehi forest.

The cops discovered a large amount of cash, which was being transported from Katni in MP to Jalna in Maharashtra.

However, instead of seizing the cash, they allegedly beat up the driver, chased him away and tried to usurp it, he said.

The police team also did not inform their seniors about the hawala money, but were exposed after the businessman, who lost the money, reached the Kotwali police station the next morning, he said.

At least 10 cops were suspended following the incident. The other suspended police personnel included sub-inspector Arpit Bhairam, who is the Bandol station in-charge, head constables Makhan and Ravindra Uike, constables Jagdish Yadav, Yogendra Chaurasia, Ritesh (driver), Neeraj Rajput, Kedar and Sadafal, the SP had earlier said. PTI MAS COR ARU