The Special PMLA court in Mumbai has ordered the confiscation of money worth approximately 40 million USD (Rs 300 crore) held in Singapore in a Ponzi Scheme Fraud case.
These assets were beneficially owned by Sayed Masood, Chairman and promotor of M/s City Limouzines (I) Ltd and his family members.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) after extensive overseas investigations had attached the bank accounts of foreign companies of Masood located in Singapore having a balance of approximately 40 million USD (Rs 300 crore). In addition to overseas assets, the ED had also attached domestic assets of Rs 129 crore in this case.
The ED is investigating a case of money laundering recorded against M/s City Limouzines (I) Ltd, Sayed Masood, City Group Companies and others. Masood, the key conspirator and beneficiary, in connivance with other directors of the City Group companies, laundered the investor’s money by routing the same through various countries and invested the same in movable and immovable properties in India and abroad.
The ED had unearthed the extensive trail of Proceeds of Crime (PoC) parked overseas which resulted in the attachment of properties in the form of bank balances to the tune of Rs 300 crore in Singapore. The said PoC held abroad was attached provisionally and subsequently confirmed by the Adjudicating Authority.
"Investigations had revealed that companies of Masood had received an amount of about Rs 400 crore in the garb of advance against exports of the diamond from entities located at UAE, Hong Kong and Singapore. However, no export of diamond was done and those entities were compensated by refund of amounts or supplied diamonds locally from UAE through some other persons at the behest of Masood and not through legal banking channels. Masood had opened many entities/companies/trusts/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 70000 investors of Rs 700 crore," alleged an ED official.
He added, "During the course of the investigation, ED had arrested Masood and filed 5 Prosecution Complaints before the Special Court for the offence of money laundering against Masood and others and the Court was pleased to take cognizance of the same. On request of ED, Singapore Authorities had restrained the funds held in the foreign bank accounts of companies pertaining to Masood. Thereafter, ED moved an application before Special PMLA Court requesting for confiscation of the foreign bank accounts. The PMLA court had ordered the confiscation of these funds. On the strength of this Court order, ED will move to the appropriate authority of foreign jurisdiction for repatriation of these funds to India."
Masood and his companies had floated various schemes offering astronomical returns i.e. more than 48% returns on deposits/investments from the public and had ultimately duped the investors to the tune of thousands of crores and had shut their operations in 2009.
