UP 'Land Mafia' Sudhir Goyal, Wife Arrested In Money Laundering Case

The Enforcement Directorate on Tuesday arrested Bulandshahr-based alleged land mafia Sudhir Kumar Goyal and his wife Rakhi Goyal in connection with a money laundering case. They were produced before a special Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) court in Ghaziabad that sent them to ED custody till March 13, the central agency said in a statement.

The money laundering case against the couple and their associates stems from multiple FIRs registered by the Uttar Pradesh Police against them on charges of fraud, cheating and intimidation of gullible land buyers.

"Sudhir Kumar Goyal is an infamous land mafia active in Bulandshahar and also listed as a gangster under the UP Gangsters Act," the ED said.

The man indulged in "fraudulent" sale and purchase of immovable properties and "illegal" development of residential colonies in Bulandshahr, it said.

The agency claimed Sudhir Goyal and other gang members plotted more than 10 colonies, where even change of land use was not done and which are also not approved by the Bulandshahr Development Authority or other relevant authorities.

He "fraudulently" executed more than 250 sale deeds, power of attorneys and agreements worth Rs 100 crore with gullible buyers and cheated them of crores of rupees, the agency said.

The agency said the sale deeds were considerably "under-valued" to evade stamp duty and a major part of the actual value of the property was dealt with in cash, which was unaccounted and laundered.

In January, the agency had seized as many as 58 immovable properties worth Rs 27.49 crore belonging to Sudhir Goyal and his associates.

The Bulandshahr police had arrested the couple and their associates last year under the UP Gangsters Act.

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