Gurugram: I-T to record statements of suspects in multi-crore heist case

The district court on Wednesday granted permission to the Income Tax (I-T) department to record the statements of the suspects in the multi-crore heist case, which is being investigated by the Special Task Force (STF)

The district court on Wednesday granted permission to the Income Tax (I-T) department to record the statements of the suspects in the multi-crore heist case, which is being investigated by the Special Task Force (STF). The court also issued non-bailable warrants against one of the accused in the case, Gurpeet Singh, on Wednesday.

Gurugram: I-T to record statements of suspects in multi-crore heist case

Additional sessions judge Amit Sahrawat in his order said the Income Tax authorities were permitted to record the statements of the accused persons, who are currently lodged at the district jail in Bhondsi, on any working day between 9am and 5 pm.

The I-T department had moved an application under Section 131 (1) of the Income Tax Act, sections 3 and 6 of the Prisoners Act 1955 as well as Section 267 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) for permission to record the statements of the accused persons.

Police said the Income Tax department filed an application under Section 132-A of the Income Tax Act, 1961 seeking the custody of all the cash and other valuables, such as gold, which has been recovered in the case by the police till date. The STF raised an objection to the application as the recovered cash and gold is the case property. In police parlance, any property for which an offence appears to have been committed or which appears to have been used for the commission of any offence is known as case property.

The court dismissed the application of the I-T department. “Section 132-A of Income Tax Act 1961 empowers the income tax authorities like Commissioner to take the custody of the assets or cash if he has ‘reason to believe’ that any asset either wholly or partly, income or property, has not been or would not have been disclosed for the purpose of Indian Income Tax Act. However, here the Income Tax authorities have nowhere recorded this ‘reason to believe’ that the complainant company has not or would not have disclosed its income,” read the court order.

The court also pointed out that inquiries are already pending before the I-T department with regard to the assets and income of the maintenance company.

STF officials said the source of the stolen money was traced during the probe by the I-T department. They had already issued a notice to the maintenance firm in this regard.

Earlier on March 15, the court granted permission to STF to question Dheeraj Setia, a former deputy commissioner of Gurugram police, and Dr Suchender Jain Nawal, who is the prime suspect in the case and currently lodged in Bhondsi jail, together.

After Setia’s involvement in the multi-crore heist case came to the fore, a case was registered against him under the Prevention of Corruption Act and he was suspended on December 10 last year, after the court started probing bribery allegations raised against him. Setia was granted interim bail by the Punjab and Haryana high court on February 24.

In a disclosure statement to the police, Dr Nawal said he handed over a bag containing 3kg gold and 135,000 US dollars to Setia in September last year for covering up the case as back then, he was the officiating in-charge of DCP (crime).

The probe conducted by the STF so far has suggested that at least ₹40 crore was stolen by the suspects from two flats of a residential society in Sector 84 in the intervening night of August 3 and 4. The theft came to light on August 20 when a person went to collect the cash and found it missing. A case was registered at Kherki Daula police station on August 21, said police.

The case was transferred to the STF on October 30 after allegations of unaccounted money and Setia’s involvement came to the fore.

Police have arrested at least 16 people in the case, including three doctors, aides of gangster Langharpuria, and Vikas Gulia and an assistant sub-inspector of the Delhi Police.