The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Tuesday carried out raids at over half a dozen locations connected to three Circle Officers (COs), a District Transport Officer (DTO), a lawyer, a land broker, and others involved in a land scam case.
The raids targeted the homes of the Dhanbad DTO, the Ranchi CO, a lawyer, and several others in connection with land scam and extortion investigations.
ED officials revealed that the raids were prompted by an FIR filed at the Pandra police station in Ranchi, concerning financial transactions tied to a land scam.
A significant amount of cash was recovered from the residence of DTO Diwakar Prasad Dwivedi, located in Dev Vihar Apartment, Dhanbad, according to ED sources.
Additionally, raids were conducted at the residences of Jai Kumar Ram, Prabhat Bhushan, Sanjeev Pandey, and Ravi in Ranchi.
The Dhanbad DTO, along with Kanke and Namkum COs in Ranchi, allegedly played a role in brokering a deal worth Rs 5.71 crore to influence the ED’s ongoing investigation into the land scam. The deal aimed to ensure that their names would not be included in the ED’s charge sheet.
On October 6, land broker Sanjeev Kumar Pandey complained to the Bandra police station, accusing lawyer Sujit Kumar of defrauding him of Rs 12 lakh by falsely promising to help him avoid being implicated in the ED investigation.
According to Pandey, Kumar assured him that both he and his associates would be removed from the charge sheet, but Pandey’s name still appeared despite the payment.
Following this, Pandey requested the lawyer to return his money, to which Kumar responded by issuing 54 cheques, handing over his car as collateral, and signing an agreement. However, tensions between the two escalated, leading Pandey to file a complaint against the lawyer.
In response, Sujit Kumar filed a counter-complaint, accusing Sanjeev Pandey and his associates of kidnapping and extorting Rs 12 lakh from him before releasing him.
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