2, including Chartered Accountant arrested in Bribery Case: Know more:

2, including Chartered Accountant arrested in Bribery Case: Know more The Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau (VACB) has identified an Assistant Director of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in Kochi as the primary suspect in a bribery case involving extortion from a businessman. The officer allegedly sought money in return for halting an investigation. On Saturday, VACB officials arrested Renjith Warrier, a Kochi-based chartered accountant, marking the third arrest in the case. Warrier was detained at his residence on Variyam Road. Investigators believe he passed confidential information about the businessman to Wilson, another accused who posed as a representative of ED officials and made monetary demands. The case unfolded after a cashew exporter from Kottarakara filed a complaint. He was questioned last year by ED Assistant Director Shekar Kumar regarding suspected discrepancies in foreign fund movements and possibly exaggerated turnover figures. The businessman claimed Shekar Kumar threatened to arrest him and his family members. Following the interrogation, Wilson contacted the businessman, allegedly asking for Rs. 2 crore to shut down the ED probe. To appear legitimate, he even forwarded a copy of an ED summons. Later, Wilson is said to have demanded an additional Rs 2 lakh, reportedly intended for Shekar Kumar. Based on the complaint, VACB launched a preliminary investigation and set a trap. On Thursday, Wilson was caught red-handed while accepting the bribe. The following day, Mukesh Jain alias Murali, originally from Rajasthan but living in Kochi, was taken into custody. He had reportedly instructed the businessman to transfer Rs. 50,000 to a bank account in Thane, Maharashtra, raising suspicions about involvement in hawala operations. All three have been remanded to judicial custody by a Vigilance Court. VACB officials plan to question them again and have said that the ED officer can also be called for questioning very soon. The probe is in the initial stages, says VACB Ernakulam SP S Sasidharan. The identification of the ED official was done based on the complaint of the complainant, and further proof will determine the further course of action. Authorities are now investigating whether other individuals who have come under ED's scrutiny in Kerala could have also faced extortion attempts. The complainant also disclosed Wilson had made claims of being associated with numerous high-profile cases, such as the 2020 high-profile Thiruvananthapuram gold smuggling case. Meanwhile, the Enforcement Directorate initiated an in-house probe into the incident and announced that disciplinary action would be initiated if any wrongdoing is established. There have been tensions between the ED and VACB in the past as well, more so in the case of important cases like the Karuvannur bank scam and the gold smuggling probe.