ED attaches Rs.158 crore property of Odisha chit-fund company

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) Wednesday attached immovable and movable properties worth of Rs.158 crore of Seashore Group of Companies - a major chit-fund player in Odisha.

The attached immovable properties include the land purchased by Seashore chief Prasant Kumar Dash in the name of different group companies in the districts of Angul, Bhadrak, Puri and Mayurbhanj in Odisha, said an official of the ED.

"The corporate office, 10 flats in Bhubaneswar and two factories in Mayurbhanj and Khurda were attached. Apart from the immovable properties, two quintals of silver coins and 1.385 kg of gold coins worth of Rs.1.1 crore were also attached," the official said in a statement.

Dash has duped thousands of poor public by collecting deposits with a promise to return high and attractive interest, said the statement.

It said these properties were acquired/possessed by Dash using illegal deposits he collected from the public.

A case under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002, has been registered against Dash and others in June.

During investigation, it was revealed that Dash had floated 24 companies and 12 cooperative societies.