A special PMLA Court in Mumbai has ordered confiscation of Rs 300 crore kept in Singaporean banks in a money laundering probe linked to an alleged Ponzi fraud perpetrated against nearly 70,000 depositors by the promoter of a Mumbai-based company, the Enforcement Directorate said on Wednesday.
These assets were "beneficially owned" by Sayed Masood, chairman and promoter of City Limouzines (I) Ltd and his family members.
The federal probe agency said these are bank accounts of Mr Masood's foreign companies in Singapore, having balance of about USD 40 million (about Rs 300 crore), and they could be attached after "extensive overseas investigations".
These funds were earlier attached provisionally by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) under sections of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) and subsequently confirmed by the Adjudicating Authority (established under the PMLA).
On Enforcement Directorate's request, the agency said, Singaporean authorities had restrained the funds held in the foreign bank accounts of companies pertaining to Mr Masood following which it moved an application before the special PMLA Court in Mumbai requesting for confiscation of the accounts.
"On the strength of this court order, the ED will move to the appropriate authority of foreign jurisdiction for repatriation of these funds to India," it said.
Mr Masood was also arrested by the agency in the case and at least five chargesheets were filed against him and others.
The agency said Mr Masood was the "key conspirator and beneficiary" in this case and he, in "connivance" with other directors of the City Group of companies, laundered investor's money by routing them through various countries and invested them in movable and immovable properties located in India and abroad.
"The ED unearthed the extensive trail of proceeds of crime parked overseas which resulted into attachment of properties in the form of bank balances to the tune of Rs 300 crore in Singapore," it said.
Probe found that companies of Mr Masood had "received an amount of about Rs 400 crore in the garb of advance against exports of diamonds from entities located at UAE, Hong Kong and Singapore".
"However, no export of diamond was actually done and those entities were compensated by refund of amounts or supplied diamonds locally from UAE through some other persons at the behest of Mr Masood and not through legal banking channel," it said.
The agency alleged that Mr Masood opened many entities, companies, trusts and bank accounts abroad without any requisite statutory permission in violations of Indian laws which served as special purpose vehicles to launder the proceeds of his criminal activity of cheating more than 70,000 investors of Rs 700 crore.
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