Reporter TV MD Anto Augustine arrested in Abkari case after liquor seizure
Anto Augustine, MD of Reporter TV, was arrested by Excise officials in an Abkari case after 67 litres of liquor were seized from his Wayanad residence.
Excise officials from Wayanad arrested Anto Augustine, 38, managing director of Malayalam news channel Reporter TV, early on Thursday in connection with a case registered under the Kerala Abkari Act. He was taken into custody around 5 a.m. from the channel's office at Kalamassery in Ernakulam.
The arrest followed the recovery of 67 litres of liquor — in excess of the legally permissible possession limit — from his ancestral residence in Muttil South Village, Vythiri Taluk, Wayanad, on Wednesday. The seizure was made during a search conducted by a Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing alleged financial fraud linked to a failed attempt to bring the Argentine national team and Lionel Messi to Kochi for an international friendly last year.
Sharfudhin T., Excise Circle Inspector at the Kalpetta Excise Circle Office, filed an occurrence report before the Judicial First Class Magistrate's Court, Sulthan Bathery, early on Thursday. Augustine has been booked under Sections 55(a), 55(i), and 58 of the Abkari Act.
An Excise team led by an Assistant Commissioner arrived at the Reporter TV office to take him into custody. After a medical examination, he will be taken to Wayanad and produced before the Judicial First Class Magistrate Court, Sulthan Bathery, excise sources said.
Augustine reportedly demanded to see the occurrence report and, after being shown a digital copy, insisted on a hard copy. Perumbavoor Excise Circle Inspector Manoj Kumar subsequently brought a copy to the office.
The SIT had carried out day-long searches at five locations across Ernakulam and Wayanad districts on Wednesday. According to SIT sources, digital gadgets, documents, foreign currencies, and the 67 litres of liquor were seized during the operations.
The searches were based on a First Information Report registered by the Kalamassery police after a preliminary inquiry found prima facie grounds for a cognisable offence. Augustine is the first accused in the case as authorised signatory of Reporter Broadcasting Private Limited, with the company listed as the second accused.
The FIR alleges that the accused entered into a criminal conspiracy dating back to before December 20, 2024, when "illegal and fake" details were inserted into an agreement signed with the Argentina Football Association with the intent of cheating the State government and the public for profiteering. It further alleges that the accused conspired to gain custody of the Jawaharlal Nehru International Stadium at Kaloor by securing exemption from the ₹5 crore security deposit on September 26, 2025.