The district unit of the Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption on Tuesday trapped the Village Administrative Officer of Katchirayanpatti and a woman reportedly while demanding and accepting bribe money from an ex-serviceman for name transfer of patta.

According to DVAC sources, the complainant, Malaiselvam, inherited 1.65 acres of land from his parents near Melur and the registration was done at Karungalagudi Sub-Registrar Office on March 27. The details of the registration were sent online to the VAO, M. Duraipandi, for processing the transfer.

When Malaiselvam visited the VAO office, Duraipandi reportedly demanded ₹10,000 for processing his application. However, Malaiselvam said he could not pay the bribe money. Later, Duraipandi reduced the amount to ₹7,000.

Based on a complaint from the ex-serviceman, the DVAC unit registered a case under the Prevention of Corruption Act and the sleuths, led by Additional Superintendent of Police, M. Sathyaseelan, laid a trap for the VAO.

When the complainant went to the VAO office on Tuesday afternoon, Duraipandi reportedly directed him to hand over the money to a conduit, Backiyalakshmi. When she was receiving the marked currency notes, the DVAC sleuths, including Inspectors of Police P.M. Ramesh Prabhu, N. Bharathi Priya and K. Kumaraguru, picked up both of them. Inquiry is underway.