The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has attached assets worth Rs 457 crore in a money laundering case against 'lottery king' Santiago Martin. He is accused of defrauding the Sikkim government of Rs 900 crore by selling lotteries illegally in Kerala. The Enforcement Directorate informed about this on Monday. The agency conducted searches in Coimbatore and Chennai against Martin and his family members.
Meanwhile, fresh raids were also conducted on May 11 and 12 at the official premises of a company named 'Future Gaming Solutions India Private Limited' in Coimbatore. Future Gaming Solutions India Pvt Ltd is the master distributor of Sikkim Lotteries and the Enforcement Directorate (ED) is probing its operator Martin since 2019. Martin is known as the "Lottery King" in Tamil Nadu. The money laundering case pertains to a CBI chargesheet filed against Martin and others for alleged offenses relating to the sale of lotteries by the Sikkim government in Kerala.
In a statement, the ED alleged, "Martin and his associate companies and entities caused a loss of Rs 910 crore to the Sikkim government during the period from 01.04.2009 to 31.08.2010 by inflated claims of prize-winning tickets.".
(PC: Freepik)
