The Greater Chennai Police has written to the Ministry of External Affairs to cancel the passport of Prakash Kanniah, who is wanted in connection with POCSO Act cases against Gem Granites owner R. Veeramani, The Hindu reported. According to police sources, Kanniah has been booked as an accused in the cases against the octogenarian businessman and his associates, and allegedly helped the accused avoid police action and was involved in the financial trail.
Source: The Hindu via Tech Word News
In a press statement, the Tamil Nadu Police said, as reported by ANI: "Since an individual named Prakash, who assisted Veeramani in his attempts to cover up the crimes, has fled the country, measures are being taken to impound/freeze his passport and bring him back to India from overseas." Police said a Look Out Circular has been issued to prevent accused persons associated with the cases from fleeing abroad.
Source: ANI via Devdiscourse
A senior police officer told The Hindu: "We have written to the Regional Passport Officer in the Ministry of External Affairs to request him to revoke Prakash Kanniah's passport. Once the passport is cancelled, he will not be able to travel or stay in hotels abroad. We have started the process to bring him back." Investigators have also taken steps to obtain an arrest warrant against Kanniah and to seek a Red Corner Notice, the officer said.
Source: The Hindu via Tech Word News
After allegations surfaced about Kanniah's involvement, police conducted searches at his office and residential premises, and his bank accounts, which had a balance of around Rs 40 crore, were frozen, sources told The Hindu.
Source: The Hindu via Tech Word News
So far, eight accused, including the main accused Veeramani, have been arrested and lodged in Puzhal Central Prison, and eight cases have been registered against Veeramani and others under the POCSO Act, police said. On October 28, police arrested Veeramani in three cases and Shanthi, Mahendra Simhan and Lazar in another case, and searches at accused Ganesh's premises in Konathur seized evidence relevant to the cases, police added.
Source: ANI via Devdiscourse
Police said the case came to light following the recovery of a pen drive, after which a Special Investigation Team was formed on the orders of the Director General of Police, Tamil Nadu, to probe the POCSO cases. Earlier in October, the Goondas Act was invoked against Veeramani and two others, Shanthi and Mahendra Simhan, police said. Further investigation is underway and a chargesheet will be filed soon, police added. All the allegations in the cases remain under investigation.
Source: ANI via Devdiscourse