Bengaluru: The Special Court for Economic Offences, Bengaluru on Friday denied bail to actress Ranya Rao (33), a resident of Bengaluru city, accused of smuggling gold bars of foreign origin into the country from Dubai. The accused is currently in judicial custody.
While denying bail to the actress, the Court cited the accused, an influential person, could manipulate with the evidences' and she has a long history of travelling abroad especially to the United States and Dubai.
Besides, the Court pointed out that the gold smuggling case involving the actress needed a thorough probe since international hawala transactions are involved in the gold smuggling. Officials of Directorate of Enforcement and Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) are investigating the gold smuggling and have registered separate First Information Reports (FIRs) against the accused Ranya Rao.
The actress was successfully intercepted by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence, a central agency, at Kempegowda International Airport (KIA) near Bengaluru city on March 3 on her arrival from Dubai.
Upon examination of the actress, the officials recovered gold bars of foreign origin worth Rs 12.56 crore weighing about 14.2 kg. She was arrested under Customs Act, 1962 and gold bars were also seized by them.
On the information provided by DRI officials, sleuths of Directorate of Enforcement and CBI began their investigations into the gold smuggling.
Meanwhile, father of actress Ranya Rao, Dr K. Ramachandra Rao, a senior IPS officer of Karnataka and Managing Director of Karnataka State Police Housing Corporation Limited, has been sent on leave by the department of personnel administrative reforms.
