The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Monday said it has attached assets worth Rs 457 crore on money laundering charges after it carried out searches in Coimbatore and Chennai against “lottery king” Santiago Martin in a case linked to alleged loss of over Rs 900 crore to the Sikkim government by fraudulent sale of the state lottery in Kerala.
During the searches, several investments of the group concerns were identified and orders were issued under Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) to freeze movable properties worth Rs 157.7 crore which includes fixed deposits and mutual funds and immovable property documents worth Rs 299.16 crore, the ED said in a statement.”Properties worth Rs 457 crore were unearthed as a result of search operations carried out, and the same have been seized/frozen as Proceeds of Crime,” it said.
The agency carried out fresh raids against Martin and his family members at residential premises in Coimbatore and business premises as well as residential properties in Chennai, and the official premises of ‘Future Gaming Solutions India Private Limited’ in Coimbatore on May 11 and 12. Future Gaming Solutions India Pvt Ltd is the master distributor of Sikkim lotteries and the Enforcement Directorate (ED) is investigating Martin, known as “lottery king” in Tamil Nadu since 2019.
The money laundering case stems from a CBI charge sheet filed against Martin and others for alleged offences relating to sale of lotteries of the Sikkim government in Kerala.
“Martin and his associate companies and entities made unlawful gains with a corresponding loss to the government of Sikkim to the extent of Rs 910 crore on account of inflating the prize winning tickets claim for the period from 01.04.2009 to 31.08.2010,” the agency added.