Bhubaneswar, September 6: Odisha Vigilance on Sunday arrested Kendrapada Drainage Division Assistant Executive Engineer Anupama Sahoo, a day after intercepting her with Rs 3.15 lakh in suspected ill-gotten cash while travelling in her official vehicle near Marshaghai of Kendrapada district.

Vigilance teams conducted simultaneous searches at two locations linked to Sahoo, during which officials recovered an additional Rs 4 lakh in cash from properties in Kendrapada.

As she failed to explain the source of the cash satisfactorily, officials seized the money along with the vehicle.

Odisha Vigilance on Saturday evening intercepted Sahoo and recovered Rs 3.15 lakh in cash, allegedly suspected to be ill-gotten money, from her possession. She was intercepted near Marshaghai Crossing on NH-53A, while she was travelling from her office to her residence at Narayan Vihar in Kendrapada in an official vehicle.

Today, she was arrested and forwarded to the Special Judge, Vigilance, Kataka. In this connection, a case was registered at the Kataka Vigilance police station.

The searches also unearthed Rs 63 lakh deposit, one flat in Bhubaneswar, one MS Rod and Cement Godown at Market complex at Kamakshyanagar of Dhenkanal district and one shop in Balangir, five plots including, one on the outskirts of Bhubaneswar, three in Anugola, and one in Dhenkanal district.

The accused Engineer entered into Government service as JE on October 21, 2003 under Anugola Irrigation Division with initial salary Rs 4,000 per month. In 2009, her service was regularised. On December 31, 2016, she was promoted to the rank of Assistant Engineer and posted at Dhenkanal Design and Monitoring Unit, Rengali Right Canal. On August 12, 2025, she was again promoted to the rank of Assistant Executive Engineer (AEE) and continued there.

On March 2 this year, she was transferred to Drainage Division, Kendrapada as the AEE.