3 months ago
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The Directorate of Enforcement, Hyderabad Zone, has completed the process of restitution of 5 attached immovable properties valued astatine astir ₹2.55 crore to Punjab National Bank nether the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002. The restitution was carried retired pursuing orders of the Special PMLA Court, Nampally, dated January 19.
The attached properties subordinate to a wealth laundering lawsuit against M/s Ghanshyamdas Gems and Jewels and its managing spouse Sanjay Agarwal. The properties see a crippled and cultivation lands located successful Ranga Reddy and Medak districts. While the worth of the assets astatine the clip of registration of the FIR connected October 19, 2011 was ₹2.55 crore, the contiguous marketplace worth is estimated astatine astir ₹16 crore.
The ED had initiated its probe based connected an FIR registered by the CBI, Banking Securities and Fraud Cell, Bengaluru, alleging that Sanjay Agarwal fraudulently induced State Bank of India to merchandise 250 kg of golden utilizing forged slope guarantees purportedly issued by Punjab National Bank. The golden was mortgaged to PNB.
According to the ED, aft details of the fraud surfaced, Sanjay Agarwal and his brothers Ajay Kumar and Vinay Kumar removed the full banal of golden from their store astatine Abids successful Hyderabad and sold it successful the section marketplace for cash. The proceeds of transgression were aboriginal invested successful firms floated successful the names of household members and an employee, with important unexplained currency deposits recovered crossed aggregate slope accounts.
The probe besides revealed that Sanjay Agarwal had obtained a passport utilizing a fake individuality and travelled abroad, opening respective slope accounts to furniture the proceeds of crime. The wealth way led to benami properties acquired successful the sanction of an employee, Avinash Soni.
Sanjay Agarwal was arrested by the ED connected February 11, 2022, and 9 immovable properties belonging to him, his household members and benamis were provisionally attached. A prosecution ailment was filed earlier the Special PMLA Court connected April 11, 2022.
Following directions from the ED, Punjab National Bank filed a restitution exertion nether Section 8(8) of the PMLA. The tribunal allowed the petition, paving the mode for restoration of the attached assets to the bank, which was identified arsenic the unfortunate of the fraud.
