Kasaragod (Kerala): Hawala money worth Rs two crore has been seized by the police in the last two months from Kerala's Kasaragod district compared to Rs 1.5 crore that was seized in 2022, officials said.
During the last two months, police arrested 10 people in nine different cases and most of the accused are in their 20s and 40s. Apart from busting drug trafficking and gold smuggling rackets, police have brought several cases of money laundering and hawala transactions under their scanner.
Majority of the cases were registered at Hosdurg Police Station in Kasaragod wherein nearly Rs 89,67,000 cash was seized in four cases. Of the total hawala money that was seized, Rs 69,68,000 was recovered from Kasaragod town police station, Rs 18 lakh from Nileswaram and Rs 21 lakh from Badiyaduaka station since May.
Under the supervision of district police chiefs, a crackdown has been launched against money laundering and hawala gangs. Special teams are working round the clock under the leadership of deputy superintendents of police. A move has also been taken to strengthen checks along the Karnataka-Kerala border.
On Sunday, an inspection was held in Kasaragod's Nellikata and Rs 21 lakh was seized. Also, Hakeem, a native of Nayanmaramula, was arrested by the Badiadukka police when he was trying to escape with the hawala money in his car, police said.
According to the police, investigations have revealed that hawala money is sent to Kerala through the Karnataka border. Out of the 11 cases registered in Kasaragod district last year, nine were under the jurisdiction of Manjeswaram police station, police added.
Also Read: Around 11 crores of hawala money seized in Hyderabad in 10 days
Nearly 800 drug cases have been registered in Kasaragod district this year after 'Operation Clean Kasaragod' was launched. Of which, over 400 cases were registered between January and March while around 1,000 people were arrested for drug trafficking in the district in the last six months. Most of the arrested were migrant workers, police said adding that most of the drugs are coming from Bengaluru.
