MUMBAI: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Wednesday arrested Abhay Narendra Lodha, managing director of city- based Topworth Group, in a money laundering case for allegedly defrauding the IDBI Bank of Rs 63 crore. The central agency said it has found that Lodha generated a Rs 3,000 crore ill-gotten wealth.
The group companies’ business activities mainly consist of manufacturing, trading and power generation. The agency also raided 12 premises at various locations in New Delhi, Mumbai, Pune, Nagpur, and Durg (Chhattisgarh) in connection with the case. The searched premises include an office at Ceejay House in Worli. On Thursday, a special court remanded Lodha to ED custody till September 8.
ED said that during the search they found details of ownership of various immovable properties and companies overseas and within India, foreign currencies of different countries equivalent to Rs 7 lakh.
Details of shell entities controlled by Lodha were also recovered. ED said that five vehicles being used by Lodha were purchased for his use by friends of his. The ED said that they found Lodha was using two mobile numbers and they were registered in the name of a third person.
The agency issued a press release on Thursday stating that Lodha caused the wrongful loss to IDBI Bank by committing a fraud in the credit facility of the letter of credit/ trade credit bank guarantee between 2014 and 2017.
The agency alleged that Lodha siphoned off money generated through fraudulent transactions. The ED money laundering case is based on a CBI cheating FIR against Topworth Steels and Power, Surendra Champalal Lodha, Abhay Narendra Lodha, Ashwin Narendra Lodha, Nitin Golecha and others.
Banks during audit found that the vehicles used for transportation of materials included buses, motorcycles, scooters, three-wheelers, cars, excavators and tractors.
The group companies’ business activities mainly consist of manufacturing, trading and power generation. The agency also raided 12 premises at various locations in New Delhi, Mumbai, Pune, Nagpur, and Durg (Chhattisgarh) in connection with the case. The searched premises include an office at Ceejay House in Worli. On Thursday, a special court remanded Lodha to ED custody till September 8.
ED said that during the search they found details of ownership of various immovable properties and companies overseas and within India, foreign currencies of different countries equivalent to Rs 7 lakh.
Details of shell entities controlled by Lodha were also recovered. ED said that five vehicles being used by Lodha were purchased for his use by friends of his. The ED said that they found Lodha was using two mobile numbers and they were registered in the name of a third person.
The agency issued a press release on Thursday stating that Lodha caused the wrongful loss to IDBI Bank by committing a fraud in the credit facility of the letter of credit/ trade credit bank guarantee between 2014 and 2017.
The agency alleged that Lodha siphoned off money generated through fraudulent transactions. The ED money laundering case is based on a CBI cheating FIR against Topworth Steels and Power, Surendra Champalal Lodha, Abhay Narendra Lodha, Ashwin Narendra Lodha, Nitin Golecha and others.
Banks during audit found that the vehicles used for transportation of materials included buses, motorcycles, scooters, three-wheelers, cars, excavators and tractors.
