New Delhi: Siddharth Yadav, better known by his YouTube username Elvish Yadav, has been asked by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) to appear before them on July 23 for interrogation in relation to an alleged money laundering case involving the use of snake venom as a recreational drug at events that he hosts. On Wednesday, this development was disclosed by official sources.
The case was lodged in May by the central agency, which pressed charges under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) after reviewing the First Information Report (FIR) and charge sheet submitted against Elvish Yadav and his colleagues by the police in the Gautam Buddh Nagar district, Noida, Uttar Pradesh.
According to a senior officer of the Enforcement Directorate (ED), Elvish Yadav had previously said that he was unable to appear before the ED on July 8 due to his abroad travel. According to the source, Yadav has been granted permission to arrive later (July 23) and has been given some leeway.
All About Elvish Yadav's Snake Venom Case
The 26-year-old YouTuber is facing charges under many parts of the law, including the Wildlife Protection Act, the Indian Penal Code, and the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act.
According to police reports, Elvish confessed to arranging for snakes and snake venom to be present at raves he sponsored. In the course of interrogation, he also admitted to knowing the other individuals who had been arrested a year before for selling snake venom.
Nine snakes, including five cobras, and twenty millilitres of what is believed to be snake venom were recovered from the party. The authorities claim that Yadav was absent from the banquet hall throughout that period. Charges in the case, which the Noida Police filed in April, featured 1,200 pages of allegations, including things like organising rave parties, using psychoactive drugs, and trafficking in snakes.
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