Page 6 - Enforcement Directorate

ED seizes ₹2,385 cr crypto, arrests OctaFX Ponzi scam mastermind in Spain

Cryptocurrency worth Rs 2,385 crore has been attached under the anti-money laundering law and the Spanish "mastermind" of the alleged multi-crore OctaFX Ponzi scam has been arrested in that country, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) said on Friday. The case pertains to a "fraud" where several investors are alleged to have been duped on the false promise of high returns through the OctaFX forex trading platform. A provisional order has been issued under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) to attach cryptocurrencies worth Rs 2,385 crore in connection with the ongoing investigation against the "unauthorised" forex trading platform OctaFX. The alleged mastermind of the fraud -- Pavel Prozorov -- has been arrested from Spain by the local police authorities, based on his involvement in cybercrimes affecting multiple countries, the agency said in a statement. OctaFX, as per the ED, "systematically duped" Indian investors of Rs 1,875 crore between July 2022-April 2023, generating

ED chargesheets Elvish Yadav in wildlife-linked money laundering case

The Enforcement Directorate has filed a chargesheet against YouTuber Siddharth Yadav alias Elvish Yadav, his friend and singer Rahul Yadav alias Fazilpuriya apart from two others, and charged them with money laundering in an alleged wildlife crime involving protected snakes and lizards, official sources said. The prosecution complaint was filed on October 13 before a special Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) court in Gurugram, Haryana. The court is yet to take cognisance of the chargesheet. Yadav (28), Fazilpuriya (35), a company named Sky Digital India Pvt. Ltd. and its director Gurkaran Singh Dhaliwal have been named as the accused in the chargesheet, the sources told PTI. Yadav has been accused of generating, acquiring, and possessing proceeds of crime worth Rs 84,000 from the monetisation of an "offending" video uploaded in 2023 that depicted live snakes and an iguana (a protected species of lizard). Fazilpuriya has been charged for the same offence as it was found dur

ED restores ₹175 cr worth assets to homebuyers; SC praises initiative

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has restored flats, commercial units and plots worth Rs 175 crore to more than 200 homebuyers who had been waiting to get possession of their dream home for over 12 years, the agency said. The unsold inventory of 354 flats, 17 commercial units and two plots belong to a project named Royal Rajvilas (RRV) in Rajasthan's Udaipur. The project's present market value is about Rs 175 crore, the ED said in a statement issued on Tuesday. The case pertains to a money laundering investigation against an accused named Bharat Bomb, apart from some others, who are alleged to have cheated the Syndicate Bank (now Canara Bank) to the tune of Rs 1267.79 crore between 2011 and 2016. The ED had attached properties worth Rs 535 crore in this case in April, 2019 including assets of Rs 83.51 crore in the form of unsold/unregistered inventory of a company named Udaipur Entertainment World Private Limited (UEWPL). Multiple cases were filed against this attachment order and

ED raids Delhi, Hyderabad, Jaipur, and Mumbai in ₹70 cr bank fraud case

The raids are underway, and the premises covered in the search action belong to entities and individuals closely associated with a specific individual

Coldrif cough syrup deaths: ED conducts searches at 7 locations in Chennai

The searches reportedly cover the residences of top officials from the Tamil Nadu drug control office

ED arrests Reliance Power CFO in ₹68 crore fake bank guarantee case

The ED case involves a ₹68.2 crore bank guarantee submitted to SECI by Reliance NU BESS, a Reliance Power subsidiary, which was later found to be fake

ED offers Flipkart to settle Fema case by paying penalty, admitting fault

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) is learnt to have offered the option of closing a FEMA violation case against e-commerce major Flipkart if the Walmart group firm admits its mistake and pays a penalty, sources aware of the development said. The option was given by the Enforcement Directorate to Flipkart last week under the compounding rules of FEMA (Foreign Exchange Management Act). "ED has given the option of compounding to Flipkart. ED has asked Flipkart to admit its mistake, pay a penalty and dismantle the seller network associated with it," a source told PTI. An email query sent to Flipkart elicited no reply. The ED had also summoned Amazon India to check the status of the company. When contacted, an Amazon India spokesperson said, "We do not comment on ongoing investigations.. A query sent to ED in this matter also received no response. An official of one of the e-commerce firms, on condition of anonymity, said that the compounding option given by ED is to strengthen India'

ED seizes ₹45 lakh during raids in Bengal municipality recruitment scam

ED seizes Rs 45 lakh in cash, documents during raids regarding Bengal municipality recruitment scam

ED raids Bengal minister's property, 5 more Kolkata sites in jobs scam case

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Friday conducted search operations at six locations in Kolkata, including a property belonging to West Bengal minister Sujit Bose, in connection with its probe into the alleged irregularities in the recruitment of a civic organisation, a senior official said. The ED teams raided the minister's residence-cum-office in Salt Lake, and the houses of former officials of the Dum Dum Municipality, he said. "Today's raids are aimed at collecting documents linked to corruption. The office of the minister was not originally on our list," the ED official told PTI. The central agency had earlier conducted a raid at Bose's residence and questioned him for over 12 hours in connection with the same case in January 2024.

LIVE news: PM Modi inaugurates Phase 1 of the Navi Mumbai International Airport

Latest news updates today: Catch all the latest news developments from across the world here

ED raids Dulquer Salman, Prithviraj in Kerala luxury cars smuggling case

The ED on Wednesday raided premises linked to actors Prithviraj, Dulquer Salman and Amit Chakkalackal and some others across Kerala as part of its investigation into a recent Customs case related to alleged smuggling of luxury vehicles from Bhutan to India, official sources said. The searches by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) also covered certain vehicle owners, auto workshops, and traders in Ernakulam, Thrissur, Kozhikode, Malappuram, Kottayam and Coimbatore. A total of 17 premises are being covered, the sources said. The action is being taken under the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) in a recent case unearthed by the Customs related to alleged smuggling of high-end luxury vehicles and unauthorised foreign exchange dealings. The searches are based on inputs exposing a syndicate engaged in illegal import and registration of luxury cars such as Land Cruiser, Defender, and Maserati through the India-Bhutan/Nepal routes, they said. Preliminary findings, according to the ...

ED raids multiple locations in Delhi-NCR in 'fake' call centre case

The Enforcement Directorate on Tuesday conducted searches at multiple locations in Delhi-NCR as part of a money laundering probe against a "fake" call centre that is alleged to have duped numerous foreigners to the tune of millions of US dollars, officials said. At least 15 premises in Delhi, Noida and Gurugram apart from those in Mumbai were raided under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). The ED probe stems from multiple FIRs registered by Delhi Police against a person named Karan Verma apart from some others. Investigation found that the fraudsters were running multiple "fake" call centres located in Rohini, Paschim Vihar and Rajouri Garden areas of Delhi wherein foreign nationals were duped by fraudsters impersonating themselves as customer support of companies like Charles Schwab Financial Services, Microsoft, Apple etc. The accused also impersonated as police/investigating agency officers and "extorted" money from the victims threatening them with

ED attaches ₹10.55-cr assets of Ansal Properties promoters in PMLA case

Six immovable properties worth Rs 10.55 crore of certain directors and shareholders of Gurugram-based real estate company Ansal Properties and Infrastructure Ltd (APIL) have been attached under the anti-money laundering law in a case linked to alleged violation of environment protection laws, the ED said on Wednesday. The attached properties, provisionally frozen under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), consist of commercial units located in Gurugram (Haryana), Greater Noida (Uttar Pradesh) and Ludhiana (Punjab). The assets belong to directors, shareholders and beneficial owners of APIL like Sushil Ansal, Pranav Ansal and Kusum Ansal, in a case that stems from the "violation" of The Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act and The Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act in two of its residential real estate projects located in Gurugram. Haryana Police had first registered an FIR and later filed a chargesheet before a court, the Enforcement

IBBI and ED reach solution on insolvency law and PMLA interface issues

The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board and the Enforcement Directorate have arrived at a solution to address the problem related to the interface between the insolvency law and the PMLA in resolving stressed assets. "I hope that in a month or two, we should be able to issue a circular as to how to go about it so as to solve the problem," Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India (IBBI) Chairperson Ravi Mital said on Wednesday. There have been issues in resolution of certain cases under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) where there have been suspected assets involving black money. Under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), the Enforcement Directorate (ED) can attach such assets. The IBC provides a moratorium on assets of an entity undergoing insolvency resolution process. "There is a problem in the interface between the IBC and the PMLA. There is a case pending in the Supreme Court and we faced problems in some cases. So we have had discussions with ED and we have arrive

ED conducts searches at Reliance Infrastructure premises in Fema probe

The Enforcement Directorate on Tuesday conducted searches in Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh as part of a FEMA investigation being conducted against Anil Ambani Group company Reliance Infrastructure, official sources said. At least six premises of some linked entities in Mumbai and Mhow in Indore were searched, they said. The surprise action was part of a Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) investigation being conducted against Reliance Infrastructure on charges of making some illegal remittances abroad, they said. The company said in a statement that the ED action was in relation to a matter "dating back 15 years". "In 2010, the company had awarded an EPC contract for the construction of the JR Toll Road (Jaipur ?Ringus Highway) to Prakash Asphaltings & Toll Highways." "This was a domestic contract with no foreign exchange involved," it said in a statement. The work was completed and the company has no continuing connection or relationship with the said contractor. The toll ..

Online betting case: Urvashi Rautela appears before ED in PMLA case

Actor and model Urvashi Rautela on Tuesday appeared before the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in a money laundering case linked to an online betting and gaming platform named 1xbet, official sources said. The 31-year-old is the India ambassador of the platform, registered in the Caribbean island of Curacao. The federal probe agency has begun recording her statement under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), the sources said. The ED has questioned cricketers such as Yuvraj Singh, Suresh Raina, Robin Uthappa and Shikhar Dhawan apart from actors Sonu Sood, Mimi Chakraborty (a former TMC MP) and Ankush Hazra (Bengali cinema) as part of this investigation over the last few weeks. Some online influencers have also been questioned. The agency is also expected to attach assets worth crores of rupees of some sportspersons and actors under the anti-money laundering law as part of the probe. The investigation into the case related to the portal 1xBet found that som

Online betting case: ED to attach assets of some cricketers, actors

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) is soon expected to attach assets worth crores of rupees of certain sportspersons and actors under the anti-money laundering law in a case linked to an online betting and gaming platform. Official sources told PTI that an investigation into the case related to a portal, '1xBet', has found that some of these celebrities utilised the endorsement fee paid to them for acquiring a variety of assets which qualified as the "proceeds of crime" under the anti-money laundering law. The federal probe agency is expected to soon issue a provisional attachment order under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) to attach these movable and immovable properties, including some located abroad in countries like the UAE. The quantification and valuation of these assets is currently underway. The properties acquired or created from the funds generated out of money laundering are categorised as proceeds of crime, and they are attached so that the persons who indulg

Kerala HC upholds stay on commission to probe ED role in gold smuggling

The Kerala High Court on Friday upheld its 2021 single judge decision to stay a state government order appointing a Commission of Inquiry (CoI) to examine any alleged attempt by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) to implicate Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan in the gold smuggling through diplomatic channels case. A bench of Justices Sushrut Arvind Dharmadhikari and Syam Kumar V M said there was no error in the single judge's August 11, 2021, interim order. The bench's ruling came while dismissing the Kerala government's appeal challenging the single judge's order. "The Writ Appeal, being bereft of merit and substance, is hereby dismissed. The interim order dated August 11, 2021, passed by the single judge is affirmed," the bench said. The single judge's order had come on a plea by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) seeking to quash the state government's notification regarding the appointment of the CoI. The bench also said the issue of the state government's legislative competence to

Actor Sonu Sood appears before ED in betting app linked PMLA case

Actor Sonu Sood on Wednesday appeared before the Enforcement Directorate (ED) for questioning in a money-laundering case linked to an online betting app named 1xBet, officials said. Sood (52) reached the agency's office in central Delhi around 12 noon. The investigating officer of the case will question the actor and record his statement under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), the officials said. The federal probe agency has questioned former cricketers Suresh Raina, Shikhar Dhawan, Robin Uthappa and Yuvraj Singh apart from former TMC MP and actor Mimi Chakraborty and Bengali actor Ankush Hazra over the last few weeks as part of this investigation. Some female social media influencers have also been questioned by the agency as part of this investigation. The probe into the operations of the 1xBet betting app is part of the ED's wider probe against such platforms on allegations of duping numerous people of crores of rupees and reportedly evading a huge amount of direct

ED questions cricketer Yuvraj Singh for over 7 hours in betting app case

Former Indian cricketer Yuvraj Singh on Tuesday appeared before the Enforcement Directorate (ED) for questioning in a money laundering case linked to an online betting app named 1xBet, officials said. Singh (43), wearing a white T-shirt and pant, reached the agency's office in central Delhi around 12 noon accompanied by his legal team. The investigating officer of the case questioned the all-rounder and left-hand batter and recorded his statement under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), the officials said. An influencer named Anveshi Jain also appeared before the ED for questioning in the same case. The federal probe agency has questioned former cricketers Suresh Raina, Shikhar Dhawan and Robin Uthappa apart from former TMC MP and actor Mimi Chakraborty and Bengali actor Ankush Hazra over the last few weeks as part of this investigation. Actor Sonu Sood has been summoned for Wednesday by the ED in the same case. The investigation into the operations of the 1xBet betti