Kochi: The Kerala High Court approved the bail plea of Swapna Suresh, one of the key accused in the diplomatic gold smuggling case in a case registered by the National Investigation Agency (NIA), on Tuesday. A Division Bench also granted bail to other accused P S Sarith, Mohammed Shafi P, A M Jalal, Rabins Hameed, Ramees K T, Sharafudeen K T, and Mohammad Ali.
The Bench comprising Justice K.Vinod Chandran and Justice C.Jayachandran passed the verdict while allowing the appeals filed by the accused against the Ernakulam NIA Special Court’s order rejecting their pleas for bail in the case. The bail has been granted to her on a bail bond of Rs 25 lakh, along with two solvent sureties.
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The smuggling scam came to light on July 5, 2020, when 30 kg of gold worth Rs 14.82 crores was seized by Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs at Thiruvananthapuram Airport. The National Investigation Agency (NIA), which took over the investigation on the directive of the Union Home Ministry, had claimed that the proceeds of smuggling could be used to fund terror activities. Swapna was arrested on July 12, 2020.
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