Tamil Nadu: ED Official Arrested in Rs 3 Crore Bribery Case, Raids Conducted for 13 Hours | Latest Updates

Tamil Nadu police arrested an Enforcement Directorate (ED) officer after he was caught allegedly taking a bribe of Rs 20 lakh from a government employee in Dindigul. The officer, identified as Ankit Tiwari, was arrested by state vigilance and anti-corruption and has been sent to judicial custody till December 15.

Here are the latest updates in the case –

• The Dindigul district Vigilance and Anti-Corruption (DVAC) concluded the raids at the ED’s Madurai office and the officer’s residence after 13 hours. The team has seized several incriminating documents.

• Quoting sources, an India Today report said an investigation into the case revealed that more officers from Madurai and Chennai were involved in this case.
• The arrested officer had allegedly been blackmailing many people and taking bribes worth crores from them. He was also distributing the bribes to other ED officials, sources stated.
• The Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption said Tiwari had demanded Rs 3 crore from a government official to “avert legal action” in a case that had already been settled.

• In October, he contacted a government employee from Dindigul and told him about a Vigilance case registered against him which was “already disposed off.” Tiwari told the employee that “instructions had been received from the Prime Minister’s Office to conduct an enquiry” and asked him to appear before the ED office at Madurai on October 30, it said.

  When the man went to Madurai, Tiwari asked him to pay Rs 3 crore to avoid legal action in the case, DVAC alleged.

• “Later, he said that he had spoken to his superiors and as per their directions, he agreed to collect Rs 51 lakh as bribe. On November 1, the said employee had given him Rs 20 lakh as first instalment of bribe. Later, he (Tiwari) intimidated the employee on several occasions through WhatsApp calls and text messages that he should pay the full amount of Rs 51 lakh, otherwise he would face dire consequences,” a release said.
• The government employee grew suspicious and complained to the Dindigul district Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Unit on Thursday. On Friday, DVAC sleuths caught Ankit Tiwari after he received Rs 20 lakh as a bribe from the complainant. “Subsequently, he was arrested at 10.30 am under the Prevention of Corruption Act.
• According to The Indian Express report, Tiwari, a 2016-batch officer, had previously served in Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh before being posted in Madurai.