The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has arrested four more people in connection with the alleged illegal land grab-linked money laundering case against former Jharkhand chief minister Hemant Soren.
The arrested individuals have been identified as Antu Tirkey, Priya Ranjan Sahay, Bipin Singh, and Irshad. They were taken into custody under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
With these arrests, the total number of people arrested in this case has risen to eight. Soren was arrested by the ED in January shortly after he resigned as the chief minister. He is currently lodged in Birsa Munda jail at Hotwar under judicial custody.
The probe against Soren pertains to an 8.86-acre plot of land in Ranchi that the ED has alleged was illegally acquired by him. The agency had filed a charge sheet against Soren, Prasad, and Soren's alleged "frontmen" -- Raj Kumar Pahan and Hilariyas Kachhap -- and alleged associate of the former CM Binod Singh before a special PMLA court on March 30.
The ED has also attached the Ranchi land and requested the court for confiscation of the plot.
The money laundering investigation stems from multiple FIRs registered by Jharkhand Police in land "scam" cases against several people, including state government officials.
The prime accused in the case is Prasad, who was the custodian of government records. He is alleged to have "misused" his official position by providing assistance to several people, including Soren, in their activities linked to illegal occupation, acquisition, and possession of proceeds of crime in the form of landed properties.