New Delhi: Congress MLA K.C. Veerendra has been arrested in connection with an illegal betting case, according to a statement released by the Enforcement Directorate on Saturday.

The arrest was carried out under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).

As per the official statement, Veerendra was apprehended in Gangtok, Sikkim, where he had travelled with his associates to explore the leasing of land for operating a casino.

The Enforcement Directorate today arrested KC Veerendra, Karnataka’s MLA from Chitradurga constituency, from Gangktok in connection with illegal online and offline betting case and recovered amount of approximately Rs 12 crore in cash, including approximately one crore in foreign… pic.twitter.com/HXpF1auWlD
— ANI (@ANI) August 23, 2025

Enforcement Directorate officials also recovered Rs 12 crore in cash, along with a substantial quantity of other valuables, from Veerendra’s residence in Karnataka.

The ED said, “It was revealed that MLA Veerendra, along with his associates, had travelled to Gangtok via Bagdogra on a business visit to lease a land casino. Incriminating material seized during search proceedings indicates a complex layering of cash and other funds. To further identify the Proceeds of Crime, Veerendra was arrested from Gangtok and produced before the Judicial Magistrate, Gangtok, Sikkim, and transit remand was obtained for producing him before the jurisdictional Court in Bengaluru.”

ED arrested KC Veerendra, Karnataka’s MLA from Chitradurga constituency, from Gangktok in connection with illegal online and offline betting case and recovered amount of approximately Rs 12 crore in cash, including approximately Rs 1 crore in foreign currency, gold jewellery… pic.twitter.com/BlHzQdStkd
— ANI (@ANI) August 23, 2025

“The arrest of MLA Veerendra follows raids at 31 locations on August 22-23 08.2025 at 31 locations across India including Gangtok, Chitradurga District, Bengaluru City, Hubli, Jodhpur, Mumbai and Goa (including 5 casinos viz. Puppy’s Casino Gold, Ocean Rivers Casino, Puppy’s Casino Pride, Ocean 7 Casino, Big Daddy Casino),” it said.

The accused is operating several online betting sites under the names King567 and Raja567, among others.

Moreover, his brother K C Thippeswamy is operating three business entities from Dubai, viz. Diamond Softech, TRS Technologies, Prime9Technologies.

Further, during the course of search proceedings, an amount of approximately Rs 12 Crore in cash, including approximately 1 crore in foreign currency, gold jewellery worth about Rs 6 crore, silver articles around 10 kilograms, along with four vehicles, were seized under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002, the ED stated.

“Further, 17 bank accounts and 2 bank lockers were also frozen. Many property-related documents were also seized from the premises of MLA Veerendra’s brother, K. C. Nagaraj, and his son, Pruthvi N. Raj. Several incriminating documents were also seized from several premises, the ED stated.

“His other associates, namely brother K. C. Thippeswamy, and Pruthvi N Raj, are in handling operations of online gaming from Dubai,” the ED stated.

(With inputs from agencies)