ED attaches assets worth Rs 11.35 crore of ex-Odisha govt officer

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has provisionally attached movable as well as immovable assets worth Rs 11.35 crore belonging to Pratap Kumar Samal and his family members under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002 in a disproportionate assets (DA) case.

Samal, a former deputy manager-ranked officer at the Odisha State Police Housing and Welfare Corporation (OPHWC), was arrested along with his wife Sasmita in November 2021 by the Odisha Vigilance, for accumulating disproportionate assets to the tune of around Rs 14.88 crore, which was 1000% over his known sources of income.

As ED initiated an investigation under PMLA, it revealed that Samal acquired properties by way of corruption and acquired assets/ properties in the name of his family members, concealed and possessed it so as to hide its original source and accordingly committed the offence of money laundering.

During its raids, the Odisha Vigilance had unearthed as many as 25 immovable properties including 22 plots, three residential properties, owned by Samal and his wife. It was termed as one of the highest disproportionate assets cases unearthed by the Odisha Vigilance.