ED Freezes Over ₹25 Crore Assets Of Ex-Lodha Developers Director Rajendra Lodha & Associates In Money Laundering Probe

Mumbai: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has frozen bank accounts, demat accounts, Fixed deposit and investment holdings worth over Rs 25 crore, during the search operation in a money-laundering probe against former Lodha Developers Ltd director Rajendra Lodha.

Officials said the agency also seized around Rs 20 lakh in cash, property documents, incriminating banking records, details of Transfer of Development Rights (TDR) transactions, and digital evidence linked to several dummy firms. These financial records are currently being analysed to trace the fund trail and identify the ultimate beneficiaries of the alleged fraud.

The searches, conducted on Wednesday at 14 locations across Mumbai and adjoining areas, are part of an ongoing probe into an alleged Rs 85-crore corporate fraud under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).According to officials, the case pertains to fraudulent land and property transactions routed through a network of shell companies and benami accounts allegedly controlled by Lodha and his close associates. The investigation has revealed that funds generated from these illicit land and property deals were layered through multiple firms to project them as legitimate business proceeds, officials added.

The agency has identified several movable and immovable assets belonging to Rajendra Lodha and his son, Sahil Lodha, along with multiple properties and investments held through dummy and benami firms. These reportedly include luxury apartments in South Mumbai, commercial premises in Thane, and plots in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR).Officials indicated that the agency will soon approach the Adjudicating Authority (AA) under the PMLA to provisionally attach the identified assets of Lodha, his family members, associated firms, and other accused persons named in the case.

Searches were also conducted at premises linked to Lodha Developers Ltd, the residences of Rajendra and Sahil Lodha, and the offices of several intermediaries allegedly used to facilitate illegal property deals. Among those searched was the Dombivli residence and office of Vinod Patil, brother of MNS leader and former MLA Raju Patil, who is also named as an accused in the case.

The probe was initiated on the basis of an FIR registered by the Mumbai Police’s Economic Offences Wing (EOW), which flagged large-scale misappropriation of funds related to land acquisition, unauthorised property sales, undervalued land deals, and illegal TDR transactions. The ED’s ongoing investigation is now focused on tracing the money laundering channels and identifying overseas linkages, if any.

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“The forensic examination of seized digital devices and property records is expected to reveal a wider network of collusive firms involved in diverting funds and manipulating land valuations,” an ED sources said, adding that more summons are likely to be issued in the coming days.

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