Karnataka Congress legislator KC Veerendra, popularly known as “Puppy,” has been arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in connection with a large-scale illegal betting and money laundering racket. The arrest took place in Sikkim on Saturday after a series of coordinated raids across multiple states.
According to the ED, searches conducted on August 22 and 23 in Sikkim, Karnataka, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, and Goa resulted in the seizure of Rs 12 crore in cash — including a significant sum in foreign currency — gold worth Rs 6 crore, 10 kilograms of silver, and four high-end vehicles, as per PTI. Officials also recovered several property-related documents from premises linked to Veerendra’s family members.
Online Betting Platforms, Casinos Linked To Cong MLA
The probe has revealed that the 50-year-old legislator from Chitradurga was allegedly running online betting platforms such as King567 and Raja567. His brother, KC Thippeswamy, is said to be operating three Dubai-based entities connected to gaming and call centre businesses, while another brother, K C Nagaraj, and nephew Pruthvi N Raj were also found to be linked through property holdings, as per reports.
Investigators further claimed that Veerendra was connected to multiple casinos in Goa, including Casino Gold, Casino Pride, Ocean Rivers Casino, Ocean 7 Casino, and Big Daddy Casino. The MLA was reportedly in Gangtok to negotiate the lease of a casino when he was detained.
Veerendra was produced before a magistrate in Gangtok and placed under transit remand for transfer to Bengaluru, where the ED’s zonal office is handling the case.
The ED has alleged that the betting operations generated huge unaccounted revenues that were laundered through domestic and overseas channels. The arrest has sparked a political storm in Karnataka, with the Congress yet to issue an official response to the developments.
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