Vindoo lured me to betting, Gurunath to cops

 

Mumbai, 26 May 2013 (PTI): Mumbai police today ’confronted’ CSK Team Principal Gurunath Meiyappan with actor Vindoo Dara Singh during questioning about IPL betting rackets.

 

According to Crime branch sources, Gurunath told the investigators that it was Vindoo who introduced him to betting.

 

Police also collected Gurunath’s voice sample for verification of his alleged telephonic conversations with Vindoo. "Gurunath and Vindoo were today made to sit face-to-face and were questioned," a senior Crime branch official said.

 

After his arrest on May 21, Vindoo allegedly told the police that he placed bets on Meiyappan’s behalf. Meiyappan, son-in-law of BCCI president N Srinivasan, was arrested on Friday. He would remain in police custody till May 29.

 

Vindoo was allegedly in "frequent touch" with Meiyappan during the IPL matches. He has reportedly told the Crime branch sleuths that Meiyappan had lost Rs 1 crore in betting.

 

While seeking Gurunath’s custody yesterday, Crime branch had told the court that he had placed huge bets on IPL matches after fixing them. "First, a particular match was fixed, then Gurunath used to place huge bets on those matches," the police’s remand application said.

 

Meanwhile, police are likely to crack down on betting networks and bookies in Mumbai as, according to Crime branch officials, Vindoo had named some local bookies through whom he placed bets.

 

The Crime branch has issued a look-out circular against alleged bookies Pawan and Sanjay Jaipur who escaped to Dubai with the help of Vindoo soon after police arrested six bookies earlier this month.