THE fourth accused in the Kerala gold smuggling case, Sandip Nair, on Saturday walked out of the Central jail on getting bail after the Kerala High Court on Friday dropped the charges registered against him under the Conservation of Foreign Exchange and Prevention of Smuggling Activities (COFEPOSA) Act. Following the High Court order, the charges registered against the prime accused in the case, Swapna Suresh, under the COFEPOSA Act were also dropped, but she continues to be in jail as she still faces other charges slapped by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) probe team.

 

Last year, Sandip Nair, the fourth accused in the case registered by the NIA, had submitted a plea in a special court in Kochi, stating that he is willing “to reveal the entire facts voluntarily under the provision of Section 164 (recording of confessions and statements) of the Code of Criminal Procedure” and “is ready to turn approver with the permission of the court”. The smuggling case came to light on July 5, 2020, when the Customs arrested Sarith, a former employee of the UAE Consulate here, for allegedly smuggling gold in a diplomatic baggage destined for the Consulate.