The Central Crime Branch (CCB) has arrested mining baron and former Minister G. Janardhan Reddy on Sunday in connection with a ₹20-crore money-laundering case in Bengaluru.
Alok Kumar, Additional Commissioner of police (Crime), told The Hindu that they had formalised the arrest on Sunday morning.
Mr. Reddy appeared before CCB for questioning on Saturday evening, in response to a notice CCB served on him on Friday. Mr. Reddy had applied for anticipatory bail on Friday and the case was adjourned to Monday.
He is accused of being the beneficiary of ₹20 crore from Ambidant Marketing Pvt. Ltd., which is accused of cheating thousands of investors in a potential Ponzi scheme. Syed Ahmed Fareed of Ambidant Marketing Pvt. Ltd. has reportedly told the police that he paid ₹20 crore to Mr. Reddy laundering it through two jewellery firms "to help him close a pending inquiry in ED." The CCB also arrested Mr. Reddy's close aide K. Mehfuz Ali Khan, also a key suspect in the money laundering case.
However, he had secured anticipatory bail in the case, but arrested in an Arm's Act case as CCB sleuths found five bullets at his house. Licence for his weapon had expired three months ago. Mr. Reddy had denied allegations of taking money or gold to bribe Enforcement Directorate officials and brushed them off as a “political conspiracy”.