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The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has attached 10 immovable West Bengal-based properties valued at Rs 15.41 crore that belong to Amit Gupta, one of the masterminds of a large-scale GST fraud syndicate, and his associates.
ED's Ranchi Zonal Office attached these properties in Kolkata and Howrah on September 29 under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002. https://x.com/dir_ed/status/1972968969436041365 In a statement, the ED said it initiated an investigation based on multiple complaints filed by the Directorate General of GST Intelligence (DGGI), Jamshedpur, against a criminal syndicate led by Shiva Kumar Deora, Amit Gupta, Sumit Gupta, and Amit Agarwal, also known as Vicky Bhalotia. ED investigation revealed that "the accused masterminds orchestrated a sophisticated fraud by creating and operating a network of 135 shell companies across Jharkhand, West Bengal, and Delhi." "The syndicate's modus operandi involved the issuance of bogus GST invoices without any actual supply of goods, thereby fraudulently generating and passing on fake Input Tax Credit (ITC) valued at over Rs 734 crore," said the ED. "This fraudulent ITC was then sold for a commission to various end-user entities, which used the illicit credit to evade their legitimate GST liabilities, causing a massive loss to the government exchequer." ED said its investigation has established that "the syndicate earned a commission of approximately Rs 67 crore from this criminal activity, which constitutes the Proceeds of Crime (POC)." The agency said Amit Gupta, acting as the primary financial manager, played a crucial role in laundering this illicit income by acquiring numerous immovable properties. "The investigation also revealed a deliberate attempt by Amit Gupta to conceal these assets by transferring them to relatives and associates after the DGGI initiated its investigation," mentioned the ED. Earlier in the investigation, the ED had conducted search operations on May 8 this year, leading to the arrest of the key masterminds, namely Shiva Kumar Deora, Mohit Deora, Amit Gupta, and Amit Agarwal, who are currently in judicial custody. Enforcement Directorate has already filed a Prosecution Complaint against the arrested accused before a Special PMLA Court, Ranchi, which has taken cognisance of the offence. Additionally, a previous Provisional Attachment Order was issued on July 3, 2025, attaching properties worth Rs 5.29 crore belonging to the syndicate head, Shiva Kumar Deora. (ANI)
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