PANJIM: Kenneth Silveira, one of the six accused in a case of fraudulent sale of land at Mopa, has approached the local court at Mapusa seeking anticipatory bail. The application, filed a day after Crime Branch issued him a notice, is expected to come up for hearing on Wednesday.
The investigating team, sources said, will object to the plea while seeking his custody for interrogation. CB had recently arrested Chicalim resident Franky Gonsalves for the offence and he is currently in the judicial custody.
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As per CB, the allegation is that Gonsalves caused a power of attorney to be executed before a Notary on November 29, 2007 in his favour from one Laxmibai Madval. “Some other person was shown as Laxmibai Madval and irrevocable power of attorney in favour of Gonsalves got executed from the said person posing as Madval,” sources said.
On the strength of the power of attorney, on July 29, 2010, a sale deed was executed in respect of the property by the alleged accused, in favour of the co-accused Silveira. The compensation amount was accordingly sought from the government as the latter was in the process of acquiring land for construction of the airport at Mopa. The cheating and fraud was thereafter exposed followed by registering of FIR against the accused.
Gonsalves had earlier approached the Sessions Court North Goa with an application for grant of anticipatory bail, which was dismissed on February 24, 2021.
He had moved the High Court of Bombay at Goa soon thereafter that upheld lower court’s order citing that the allegations against the applicant are serious in nature.
