The arrest of highroller Rajesh Kalra is imminent in the lajpat Nagar heist. Having cracked the whodunit, investigators have now shifted focus to the source of money and its trail which they believe took the hawala conduit.
The contradictory statements of Kalra and his business partners have further strengthened the suspicion of investigators. With IPl Season 7 slated to begin in March, the Special Cell of Delhi Police suspects the stolen money was to be used in betting. Moreover, the market is flush with cash ahead of IPl matches.
Police sources said Kalra, arrested in 2000 for his links with bookies and charged in a matchfixing scandal involving then South African cricket captain Hansie Cronje, could face arrest as ‘hawala links’ of the money were rearing their ugly head.
Meanwhile, following the investigation in the heist, only `4.69 crore have been robbed in contravention to complainant Rakesh Kumar Sharma claiming he was divested off `7.69 crore.
“Rajesh Kalra has failed to explain the source of money and after scanning the call detail records (CDR) of Kalra, it has been revealed he was in constant touch with bookies based in Dubai, Jaipur, Mumbai and london. It was also found that Kalra had close ties with actor Vindoo Dara Singh, who is facing charges in the IPl Season 6 spotfixing scandal,” sources added.
“We have now started following the money trail and have asked the Enforcement Directorate (ED) for a
probe into alleged hawala transactions in this case,” police sources said. Investigations also revealed that after the incident, the victims made a PCR call only after traffic was held up. Meanwhile, the Delhi Police have made one more arrest in the lajpat Nagar heist.
“Ajay, in his early 20s, was arrested from South Delhi area on Monday morning,” the officer added. Four arrests have so far been made and a juvenile suspected to be the mastermind of the stickup, has also been apprehended.