The officers of the Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption (DVAC) on Tuesday conducted searches at the houses of two inspectors of the Chennai City Police in connection with cases booked against them on allegations of indulging in corrupt activities while they were working with the Anti-Vice Squad (AVS).
The accused are Sam Vincent, crime inspector, Kilpauk, and Saravanan, law and order inspector, Saidapet. The case was booked following an order of the Madras High Court on a petition filed by Y. Akbar Ahmed, Royapettah, sources said.
The petitioner alleged that the inspectors earned lakhs of rupees in collusion with traffickers while in the AVS, and after a probe, they were transferred to other police stations. Mr. Ahmed stated that as corrupt officers, they should not remain in public service.
Preliminary inquiry
Based on the petition, a preliminary inquiry was conducted, which revealed that Sam Vincent and Sarvanan served as inspectors of the AVS between January and May 2018. The first information report (FIR) said they had were in close contact with ‘Tailor’ Ravi and ‘Poonga’ Venkatesan, who ran commercial sex rackets. ‘Tailor’ Ravi, who had been in hiding for eight years, was arrested in November 2018.
“The accused inspectors had close contact with the traffickers, and both had taken money from them. The preliminary inquiry revealed a prima facie case against the accused. Sam Vincent and Saravanan appear to have committed criminal misconduct punishable u/s 13(2) r/w 13(1) (d) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988,” said M.E. Ramachandra Moorthy, Deputy Superintendent of Police, DVAC, in the FIR.
Sources said 17 incriminating documents were seized from Sam Vincent during the raid on his residence. Eight incriminating documents, fixed deposits worth ₹18.5 lakh and ₹2.5 lakh in cash were seized from Saravanan’s house.
