ED files supplementary chargesheet in PLFI terror funding case

New Delhi, Oct 18 (IANS) The ED, Ranchi Zonal Office, has filed a supplementary Prosecution Complaint (PC) under PMLA, 2002, before the Special PMLA Court, Ranchi, against Dinesh Gope, the self-styled chief of the proscribed Naxal organization People’s Liberation Front of India (PLFI) in a terror funding case, an official said on Saturday.

The complaint also names 19 other individuals and entities, in the case of terror funding and money laundering, where the total Proceeds of Crime (POC) generated through systematic extortion and levy collection by the PLFI are estimated to be approximately Rs 20 Crore.

In August, the ED arrested Dinesh Gop, the jailed chief of the banned Maoist outfit People’s Liberation Front of India (PLFI), in connection with a money laundering case.

The ED registered an Enforcement Case Information Report (ECIR) against Gop under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).

A dreaded Maoist leader, Gop, was arrested by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) from Nepal on May 21, 2023, in a terror funding case. Before his capture, the Jharkhand government had announced a reward of Rs 25 lakh, while the NIA had declared a Rs 5 lakh reward for information leading to his arrest. Till August, he is currently lodged in Palamu Central Jail.

According to ED officials, Gop was interrogated for two days in July 2023, during which he admitted to extortion and levying money through shell companies run by his close aides and family members.

Investigations revealed that Gop laundered several crores through entities such as Bhavya Engikan Pvt Ltd, Shiv Shakti Minerals Pvt Ltd, Shakti Samriddhi Infra Pvt Ltd, and Palak Enterprises, which were being operated by his wives Shakuntala Devi and Geeta, along with associate Sumant Kumar.

The probe further found that the NIA had seized Rs 19.93 lakh from the bank accounts of his wives and detected transactions worth over Rs 2.5 crore across more than two dozen accounts. In addition, a flat in Ranchi and a residence in Edalhatu, valued at nearly Rs 1 crore, were attached.

The money-laundering trail dates back to a 2018 FIR registered at Bedo police station, Ranchi, where investigators discovered that after the November 2016 demonetisation, Gop’s associate was caught attempting to deposit Rs 25.38 lakh in scrapped currency notes.

The ED is now expanding its probe to map Gop’s levy-extortion network, financial conduits, and investment channels across Jharkhand and neighbouring states.

--IANS

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