ED raids 'lottery king' Santiago Martin's properties in Chennai over money laundering probe

Chennai: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Thursday carried out fresh searches targeting Chennai-based businessman Santiago Martin, often referred to as the 'lottery king'. Martin, who is known as the largest individual donor to political parties, having contributed over Rs 1,300 crore in electoral bonds, is under investigation for money laundering, sources confirmed.

This move follows a recent decision by the Madras High Court, which allowed the ED to proceed with its investigation against Martin. This came after the Tamil Nadu Police sought to close the primary FIR against him and several others, a plea that was accepted by a lower court.

Sources revealed that the ED is searching multiple properties linked to Martin in Chennai and other locations as part of the ongoing investigation.

The ED had earlier attached assets worth about Rs 457 crore in connection with a case involving Martin. The case pertains to an alleged fraud that caused a loss of over Rs 900 crore to the Sikkim government due to the fraudulent sale of the state lottery in Kerala.

Future Gaming Solutions India Pvt. Ltd. is the master distributor of Sikkim lotteries and the ED has been investigating Martin, known as the 'lottery king' in Tamil Nadu, since 2019.

Martin recently made news after it came to light through Election Commission data that his company (Future Gaming) was the largest purchaser of electoral bonds worth more than Rs 1,300 crore, between 2019 and 2024, meant for donations to political parties.

The Madras High Court last month allowed the ED case against Martin and his linked persons to go on as it set aside a lower court order which had accepted a closure report filed by the Chennai Police crime branch in a case related to the seizure of "unaccounted" Rs 7.2 crore from his Chennai home.

PTI