A Central Bureau Investigation (CBI) court on Saturday denied bail to alleged arms dealer and accused in the AgustaWestland money laundering case, Sushen Mohan Gupta. Gupta had moved court for bail on April 6, and the court had reserved the order after hearing it on April 15.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) had earlier told the court that Gupta "tried his best, but could not destroy the evidence". During the hearing, ED's counsels also accused Gupta of "influencing" Rajiv Saxena, after the latter was allowed to turn "approver" in the case by the court. They reportedly told the court, "When one of our witnesses wanted to be an approver, Gupta went to Dubai to desist him. He had started calling him when there was a buzz on diaries."
The ED had previously said that two diaries and a pen drive were recovered from Saxena's possession, and that these allegedly belonged to Gupta. While opposing Gupta's bail plea, the ED also argued that the statement Gupta gave in 2016, that he didn't have any knowledge of Interstellar Technologies — a Mauritius-based company through which money was laundered — was "wrong". "Later during the investigation, it was found that he was the one who gave instructions for transferring funds," the ED had added.
On the other hand, Gupta's counsels argued that he had cooperated with the authorities and joined their probe as and when summoned. "There is no scope of apprehension regarding his availability," they had said.
Gupta was arrested on March 26, and the court had sent him to judicial custody on April 8 till April 20. He is currently lodged at Tihar jail.
Who Is Gupta?
- Sushen Gupta is an alleged defence agent.
- His name came up in the disclosures made by accused-turned-approver Rajiv Saxena
- Following Saxena’s confession, Gupta was arrested under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA)
