CBI arrests hawala dealer who hid Rs 5.7 crore new notes in 'secret bathroom chamber'

The raid, which took on Saturday, also saw the seizure of gold bars weighing 32 kg.

Bengaluru, Dec 13: K C Virendra, a businessman and politician from Karnataka's Chitradurga district was arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation after Rs 5.7 of hawala money in new denomination were found hidden inside a secret chamber inside his bathroom. The raid, which took on Saturday, also saw the seizure of gold bars weighing 32 kg.

Acting on a tip-off that a hawala trander was involved in the conversion of old currency notes into gold ingots, the officers conducted raids at 15 locations.

The CBI has resisted a case against Virendra and is probing the role of several banks which may have facilitated the accused in procuring the new currency. The FIR names also two middlemen who were instrumental in coordinating with bank officials in the procurement of the new notes.

The Income Tax department had earlier this week conducted searches at Challakere and Hubbali, where Virendra's family owns a few garment factories, in Karnataka. These raids were follows ups on IT seizures conducted in Goa on November 18.

IT sleuths had raided the residences of Virendra, his brother K C Nagaraj, V R Habeeb and Thippeswamy.

The documents seized during the raids revealed that Virendra, son-in-law of veteran Kannada actor Doddanna, owns casinos in Goa and was an accused in a cricket betting case as well.

OneIndia News