The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has provisionally attached immovable and movable properties totalling to ₹4.76 crore of the city-based company M/s Shree Om Sainath Construction Private Limited and other individuals related to one Roopesh Verma in a Ponzi scheme case.
The properties, attached under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 (PMLA), include flat, office premise, fixed deposits and bank balances. “Investigation under PMLA was initiated on the basis of two FIRs registered by police station, Barakhamba Road in New Delhi under sections 406,420 and 120B of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). The FIRs were registered on the complaint by various investors across the country, alleging that the firm duped them by alluring them under a ponzi scheme disguised as car rental and resort scheme,” ED stated in a statement on Wednesday.
According to ED, M/s Shree Om Sainath Car On Rent Private Limited attracted investments from the public by promising them an exorbitant return on their investment in its car rental and resort scheme. Investors came to know that they have been cheated when their post dated cheques got dishonoured due to insufficient balance.
Investigation by ED under PMLA revealed that the firm and its director Verma by way of criminal activity related to scheduled offences has acquired huge sums of money from public/investors, which was illegally diverted for purchasing properties in the name of M/s Shree Om Sainath Construction Private Limited and other individuals. The identified proceeds of crime worth ₹ 4.76 crore diverted in such manner have been provisionally attached under PMLA, the agency stated.