Terror funding racket of Rs 85 crore busted in Kashmir, senior cop raided

Digital Desk: A senior police officer and a well-known businessman in Srinagar were among the suspects raided as part of a crackdown on a Rs 85-crore terror funding racket in Jammu and Kashmir. According to officials, this racket could be the largest terror funding case to be unearthed in the nation's recent history. 

The State Investigation Agency (SIA), the top investigative body in the Union Territory, conducted the operations between Wednesday and Friday.

"It is important to note that funds totaling Rs 85 crore have been raised and laundered through secret channels in this case of terror funding. The money is suspected of being used to fund secessionism and terrorism in the UT of Jammu & Kashmir," said the agency.

Electronic devices were among the incriminating items found during the searches, SIA stated.

A week after the agency said that it had "uncovered a module involved in the laundering of illegal proceeds and its use in unlawful activities," the simultaneous raids were conducted.

According to the SIA, a formal criminal case was filed in August following an investigation that revealed the laundering of funds over Rs 85 crore.

The agency reiterated that it will bring "all involved to justice, besides unraveling the broader nexus behind this act".

According to sources, the purported money-laundering network includes connections to Dubai, and since Wednesday, raids have been carried out in Kashmir and New Delhi as part of the inquiry to find the connection and establish the money trail. The SIA raided 22 locations on Wednesday, including the homes of a top businessman and a senior police officer.

The huge money laundering operation, which involved the smuggling of gold among other things, is significantly more extensive than the terror funding cases that the Kashmiri police and other security services have previously cracked.

Ten sites in the districts of Srinagar, Pulwama, and Anantnag were searched on Friday morning, and documents, devices, and incriminating materials were seized.

"The State Investigation Agency once again affirmed its resolve in dismantling the terror ecosystem in Jammu and Kashmir," stated a statement from the SIA.