Karnataka Lokayukta cops raid its ex-SP; arrest man for extortion

Bengaluru: The Karnataka Lokayukta police raided its former SP in connection with an extortion case following the arrest of a private individual.

Sources said that the house of Srinath Mahadev Joshi, who was relieved on June 12 as superintendent of police (Bengaluru City-1), Lokayukta, in Bengaluru, was searched.

However, Joshi wasn't present at the time of the search and nothing significant was recovered, sources said.

Sources said that Joshi was relieved as he had sought a no-objection certificate (NoC) to move out of the Lokayukta and go to the Home Department. "Joshi had sought to move out as he had completed three years in the Lokayukta department. Hence, his request was approved," a top source told DH.

It is not yet clear where Joshi is and if he has been posted to any other department. Joshi was raided after investigators found possible leads allegedly linking him to the prime suspect in the case, Ningappa G alias Ningappa Sawant. Ningappa (46), from Hosadurga in Chitradurga, was arrested on June 2, according to the Lokayukta police.

Ningappa's arrest followed an FIR, which alleged that Lokayukta officers were being impersonated and government officials were being extorted with threats of cases and raids.

According to a statement from the Lokayukta issued on Tuesday, Ningappa has confessed to extorting excise officials in the last six months.

"The proceeds of the crime were invested in cryptocurrencies in the name of the suspect and his relatives. When his mobile was inspected, 13 cryptocurrency wallets were recovered. The wallets have been frozen to trace the money trail and further the probe. The number of excise officials targeted and the amount they paid to the suspect are also being probed,” the statement said.

The Lokayukta also said a probe is on to find out the role of other officials. "WhatsApp chats and call details are being examined," according to the statement.

However, it wasn't immediately clear if the "officials" were in the Lokayukta or belonged to other departments. Sources also suggested that Ningappa had links to the secretariat.

A total of 35 FIRs have been registered by the state police in different parts of the state on the alleged extortion of government officials by impersonating Lokayukta personnel. However, these weren't linked to the current case and were being probed separately, officials said.