Pramesh S Jain
The Directorate of Enforcement (ED),Bengaluru Zonal Office,on Saturday filed a Prosecution Complaint before the Special Court for Prevention of Money Laundering Act cases against Mallikarjun Shipping Pvt.Ltd.and its Managing Director,Satish Krishna Sail,who is also the MLA from Karwar,in connection with illegal export of seized iron ore causing a loss of ₹44.09 crore to the state exchequer.
According to the ED officials,Sail entered into a criminal conspiracy with several accused persons to illegally purchase iron ore that had been seized and stockpiled at Belekeri Port,in violation of High Court of Karnataka orders and Forest Department seizure directives.
The ore,originally belonging to multiple mining and trading companies, was exported to buyers in China with the alleged connivance of Mahesh J.Biliye,the Port Conservator at Belekeri.
Investigators found that Sail made payments amounting to ₹46.18 crore to the other accused towards these illegal purchases.
The seized ore was exported through an undisclosed foreign entity identified as JI (Hebei) Iron and Steel Investment Co.Ltd.,Hong Kong (formerly Mallikarjun Shipping HK Ltd)—instead of being shipped directly to Chinese buyers, a move ED says was intended to conceal and launder the proceeds of crime.
The ED claims that the company generated ₹27.07 crore in proceeds of crime, while Sail personally derived ₹2.09 crore through the Hong Kong-based entity.
Sail also allegedly maintained several foreign bank accounts in Standard Chartered Bank (Hong Kong) and the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC), Hong Kong.
Earlier searches by ED led to the seizure of ₹1.68 crore in cash, 6.75 kg of gold and bullion worth around ₹6.58 crore, and the freezing of bank accounts collectively holding ₹14.13 crore.
Three immovable properties worth ₹21 crore were also provisionally attached.Sail,who was arrested during the probe,was granted interim medical bail,which the Special Court cancelled on November 7,2025.
The ED said further investigation is underway to trace the remaining proceeds of crime and identify the roles of additional accused persons.
