Officers from India’s Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) raided the residence of an official from economic intelligence agency Enforcement Directorate (ED) in the hill city of Shimla. News agency PTI reported that the raid came after the ED official was caught accepting bribe money from a local businessman during a CBI operation but managed to evade his arrest and fled with the cash worth INR 55 lakh ($64,000).

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According to CBI officials cited by PTI, the accused ED officer an assistant director in Shimla, along with his banker brother Vikas Deep, had travelled to Delhi to collect the money in cash from the businessman, who had been facing a case under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).

Businessman had filed extortion case

The businessmen had filed a complaint against the ED officer, alleging extortion. The Chandigarh unit of the CBI, in response, set up a plan to nab the ED officer red handed.

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However, the plan failed as the ED officer managed to escape from the scene with cash in his vehicle. His car was later seized from the local ED office. The officials said that cash worth INR 1 crore ($120,000) was also recovered. Meanwhile, the brother of the ED official was detained and presented before a court. He is now being questioned for his role in the extortion case.

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Meanwhile, ED sources told PTI that the assistant director from its Shimla sub-zonal office, along with his supervisory officers—a deputy director and a joint director based in Chandigarh—have been transferred to Delhi in light of the ongoing investigation.

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(With inputs from agencies)