Pay Rs 45L surety, court tells boat owner

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The CJM court in Kollam ordered the submission of a surety equalling Rs 45 lakh from Freddy to get his boat released from coastal police custody on Thursday.

The court had asked Freddy to submit an affidavit stating that the boat carried bullet marks because of the firing and he would not tamper with the markings at all.

The court directed stringent conditions for the release of the boat from police custody.

The boat had to be produced for the trail whenever directed by the court and once in two weeks before the coastal circle inspector.

It would n’t be repaired without prior written permission from the ACP crime detachment.

Freddy also had to produce a surety of Rs 15 lakh as a bond along with two solvent sureties for another 15 lakh each. If he failed to meet any one of these conditions he would have to forfeit the Rs 45 lakh.

“The prosecution argued that an affidavit from Freddy had to be obtained to release the boat since the affidavit filed at the high court of Kerala by him stated that he had not witnessed any firing,” K.O. Raju, Deputy director prosecution said.

Advocate Manoj Thomas Andrews appeared for Freddy and accepted the conditions ordered by the CJM A.K. Gopakumar.