Massive Cash and Gold Seized in Birbhum: Arrest of Quarry Owner's Relative
Significant Arrest in Birbhum District
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Kolkata, July 30: The Birbhum District Police in West Bengal apprehended Minar Mondal on Thursday after extensive search operations and interrogations lasting nearly 24 hours. Minar is related to Tulu Mondal, a prominent stone-quarry owner in the area.
The police initiated their operations on Wednesday afternoon, leading to the discovery of substantial amounts of unaccounted cash and gold at Minar's home. To facilitate the counting of the seized currency, officers brought in currency-counting machines from a nearby bank.
By Thursday morning, the total cash recovered was reported to exceed Rs 28 crore, according to a member of the investigative team.
In addition to the cash, authorities seized 15 kilograms of gold, valued at over Rs 21 crore. The total estimated worth of the confiscated cash and gold is around Rs 50 crore.
Minar was officially arrested on Thursday morning and taken to a local police station. Meanwhile, police left his residence with several trunks filled with the seized valuables.
He is scheduled to be presented in a district court in Suri later today, where the public prosecutor will request his police custody.
Initially, Minar was uncooperative, refusing to disclose the origins of the substantial cash and gold. However, he eventually confessed that the items were linked to a criminal syndicate, as confirmed by Birbhum's district police Superintendent, Bidit Raj Bundesh.
Police sources revealed that last Tuesday, seven dacoits were arrested by officials from the Mohammad Bazar police station in Birbhum. Information obtained from these dacoits led investigators to Minar's residence, prompting the raids that began on Wednesday afternoon and continued into Thursday.
Minar, previously a bus driver for the state-run transport corporation, is believed to have significant ties to Tulu Mondal's stone-quarry operations. Tulu is known to be a close associate of Anubrata Mondal, the former district president of the Trinamool Congress in Birbhum.
The discovery of such a large sum of cash and gold has astonished local residents. Tulu Mondal has faced allegations of illegal stone mining in the past and was also implicated in a cattle smuggling case, coming under scrutiny from the Enforcement Directorate in 2022. Investigators are now looking into whether the cash and gold found at Minar's residence actually belong to Tulu Mondal.