The Karnataka Lokayukta said on Thursday that senior IPS officer Srinath Mahadev Joshi had been in touch with G Ningappa, a former head constable arrested for allegedly extorting Rs 4.92 crore from government officials by posing as a Lokayukta officer.
“Joshi was in touch with Ningappa and was involved in threatening government officials and to extort money. They used the code word ‘kg’ and in the preliminary probe, it has been revealed. The collected black money was being converted to white money by investing in cryptocurrency,” the anti-corruption watchdog said in a statement.
A police officer said that “kg” referred to lakhs.
Lokayukta said Joshi was involved in extortion and exchanged related WhatsApp messages with Ningappa, also known as Ningappa Sawanth.
According to the Lokayukta, Ningappa, had 23 cryptocurrency wallets and Rs 4.92 crore was invested in 13 wallets. On June 15, Joshi’s house was searched after the Lokayukta police secured a warrant from the court, the statement said.
He was a superintendent of police in the Lokayukta until June 12.
The Lokayukta also said that there were no complaints from outside (government officials or private persons) but that the case was registered when the Lokayukta chief got to know about the extortion.
Ningappa was arrested in the case on June 2. He has been released on bail.
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The Karnataka High Court has ordered an interim stay on the investigation against Joshi and Ningappa in the extortion case.
On June 30, the Lokayukta police approached the high court seeking permission to continue their investigation against Joshi and Ningappa, citing public concern over the credibility of the institution. On Thursday, Justice S R Krishna Kumar of the high court posted the matter to Tuesday.
Thirty-five cases have been registered at various police stations where Ningappa allegedly approached government officials, mainly from the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) and the excise department, with extortion demands.
Ningappa used the names not only of Lokayukta police officers but also of the Lokayukta and the Upa Lokayukta, the anti-corruption watchdog suspects.
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Ningappa is accused of calling government officials over the phone to extort money ranging from Rs 2 lakh to Rs 25 lakh.