YouTuber Elvish Yadav has been summoned to appear before the Enforcement Directorate on Monday in Lucknow for questioning in a money laundering case linked to the suspected use of snake venom as a recreational drug in parties he hosted and related financial transactions. He was also summoned by the central agency in the month of July. According to the information, Yadav will record his statement at its zonal office in Lucknow.
The Enforcement Directorate registered a case in May under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) against Elvish Yadav, taking cognisance of an FIR and charge sheet filed by the Gautam Buddh Nagar (Noida) district police in Uttar Pradesh against him and other linked individuals. Yadav was summoned by the agency in the second week of July, however, he requested a deferment of the summons citing his scheduled foreign travel and professional commitments. Rahul Yadav alias Rahul Fazilpuriya, a singer from Haryana allegedly linked to Elvish Yadav, was questioned by the ED in the said case, news agency PTI reported citing official sources. Alleged generation of proceeds of crime and use of illicit funds for organising rave or recreational parties is under the scanner of the ED.
Charges against Elvish Yadav
Elvish Yadav was arrested on March 17 by Noida Police in connection with its probe into the suspected use of snake venom as a recreational drug in parties that were allegedly hosted by him. The controversial 26-year-old YouTuber, also the winner of the reality show Bigg Boss OTT 2, was booked under various sections of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, Wildlife Protection Act and the Indian Penal Code (IPC) by Noida Police.
Yadav was among the six people named in an FIR lodged at Noida's Sector 49 police station on November 3 last year on a complaint from a representative of animal rights NGO People for Animals (PFA). The five other accused, all snake charmers, were arrested in November and they were later given bail by a local court. The five snake charmers were arrested from a banquet hall in Noida on November 3 last year and nine snakes, including five cobras, rescued from their possession, while 20 ml of suspected snake venom was also seized.
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