CBI arrests ED assistant director after catching him red-handed taking Rs 20 lakh bribe from jeweller

An assistant director of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) was arrested in Delhi by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) for allegedly taking a bribe of Rs 20 lakh from a Mumbai-based jeweller.

The ED officer was identified as Sandeep Singh Yadav and was caught red-handed accepting the bribe.

According to the CBI, Yadav, who previously worked with the Central Board Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT), was appointed assistant director in the ED in May last year.

Who did the ED assistant directors take bribes from?

The CBI said that on August 3 and 4, the ED had conducted searches at the jeweller’s premises after which Yadav allegedly threatened to arrest the jeweller’s son if he did not pay him Rs 25 lakh. 

More from India

Following the negotiations, the amount was reduced to Rs 20 lakhs, PTI reported CBI officials as stating. 

Yadav was arrested from Delhi's Lajpat Nagar area on Thursday, ANI quoted a senior CBI official as confirming.

As per officials, the CBI received a complaint and acting on the same, a trap was laid to nab the ED official red-handed while accepting the bribe.

The officials further informed that the CBI is in the process of getting an FIR in the case.

Yadav's arrest comes eight months after another ED officer posted in the agency’s Madurai sub-zonal office was nabbed. In December 2023, the Tamil Nadu Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption (DVAC) booked ED officer Ankit Tiwari after he allegedly received a tranche of Rs 20 lakh out of a total bribe amount of Rs 51 lakh.

Based on the Tamil Nadu DVAC’s case, the ED, later that month, had filed a complaint against Tiwari.

In November last year, Rajasthan’s Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) had arrested ED officer Naval Kishore Meena after allegedly catching red-handed a middleman working on his behalf.

Meena, who was probing a complaint against a businessman in a chit fund case in Manipur, had allegedly sought money from the latter to avoid arrest or seizure of his properties.