The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has taken Karnataka Congress MLA KC Veerenra into custody on Saturday in connection with a money laundering probe. The arrest followed a series of raids conducted on Friday at various premises associated with Veerenra. These raids led to the seizure of over ₹12 crore in cash, along with significant amounts of gold and silver. Furthermore, more than ₹1 crore in foreign currency was recovered. The ED’s investigation, initiated on August 22 and 23, targeted an illegal betting and online gaming racket involving Veerenra and his associates. The ED conducted raids at 31 locations across the country, including Gangtok, Chitradurga, Bengaluru, Hubli, Jodhpur, Mumbai, and Goa. The Goa operations focused on five major casinos: Papi’s Casino Gold, Ocean Reverse Casino, Papi’s Casino Pride, Ocean 7 Casino, and Big Daddy Casino. During the raids, the ED seized approximately ₹12 crore in cash, including ₹1 crore in foreign currency, along with nearly ₹6 crore in gold, 10 kilograms of silver, and four luxury vehicles. In addition, 17 bank accounts and two lockers have been frozen. The investigation revealed that Veerenra was allegedly running online betting sites, including King567 and Raja567. His brother, KC Thippeswamy, managed the operation from Dubai, using the companies Diamond Softech, TRS Technologies, and Prime 9 Technologies. Other individuals, including another brother, KC Nagaraj, and his son, Prithvi N. Raj, were also involved. The ED found important documents and evidence suggesting that illegal earnings were being laundered through various means. Veerenra was apprehended in Gangtok, where he was attempting to secure a land casino lease with his associates. On Saturday, he was presented before a local court, and the ED secured a transit remand to transfer him to a Bengaluru court for further legal proceedings.
