Mumbai: The special PMLA court on Thursday rejected the bail plea of Akram Shafi, who was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on November 21 for his role in the Malegaon money laundering case. At the time of his arrest, the ED claimed that he was directly involved in the acquisition and possession of proceeds of crime amounting to Rs 8.66 crore.

During questioning, Shafi allegedly admitted to facilitating daily cash withdrawals of around Rs 1 crore from the bank accounts of Ahmedabad-based entities since July 2024. The withdrawn cash was then handed over to various persons, including hawala dealers in Ahmedabad.

He also revealed that he had been working for Mahmud Bhagad, alias Challenger King, for a monthly salary of Rs 35,000. His role involved processing transactions through RTGS and cheques, managing withdrawals from various bank accounts, and receiving and delivering cash on King’s instructions.

The probe began after a Malegaon resident filed a complaint against Siraj Ahmed for misusing documents to open fake accounts used for money laundering. Further investigation led to Shafi, who was caught while attempting to flee to Dubai.