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NEW DELHI: As part of its ongoing money laundering probe against Delhi minister Satyendar Jain, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) carried out fresh searches on Monday at his residence and other premises associated with his close relatives and associates in the national capital.
Jain was arrested by the ED on May 30 on charges of “not co-operating” with the agency, “misleading” the probe and transferring the “proceeds of crime”. The next day, he was remanded in ED custody for 10 days till June 9 by a special court here for custodial interrogation.
Monday’s searches began early morning and continued till late in the afternoon on the ED’s suspicion that Jain’s associates may tamper with fresh evidence by disposing of details of transactions of shell companies.
TOI had reported in its Monday’s edition that the ED had found evidence of shell companies, allegedly linked to Jain, having received more than Rs 16 crore and having “invested” around Rs 28 crore in land deals. The ED has established a money trail to these transactions made by five shell companies. It is still probing the source of the other funds.
The arrest of Jain by ED on May 30 was due to the fear of the agency that he may destroy evidence of money laundering after the probe team found he had started transferring some of the land parcels, purchased using the shell companies, to some of his close relatives. “Transferring the proceeds of crime is a serious offence under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act,” a source had told TOI.
The ED has mapped transactions of about Rs 28 crore in five shell companies, allegedly controlled by Jain, which had bought lands in north and northwest Delhi between 2010 and 2014. The same set of companies had continued to receive “unsecured loans” from Kolkata-based shell companies in lieu of cash transferred to them through hawala (illegal channel), the ED had earlier told the special court here.
The ED had attached assets worth Rs 4.81 crore in April this year after it had established a money trail of an equivalent amount that was found to be laundered by the minister and his family members. Now, the agency has gathered fresh evidence of money laundering, taking the total receipts of Jain-controlled shell firms to over Rs 16 crore. At least 4.6 crore of these funds were received in 2015-16, sources said, when Jain was a minister in the AAP government.
Jain was arrested by the ED on May 30 on charges of “not co-operating” with the agency, “misleading” the probe and transferring the “proceeds of crime”. The next day, he was remanded in ED custody for 10 days till June 9 by a special court here for custodial interrogation.
Monday’s searches began early morning and continued till late in the afternoon on the ED’s suspicion that Jain’s associates may tamper with fresh evidence by disposing of details of transactions of shell companies.
TOI had reported in its Monday’s edition that the ED had found evidence of shell companies, allegedly linked to Jain, having received more than Rs 16 crore and having “invested” around Rs 28 crore in land deals. The ED has established a money trail to these transactions made by five shell companies. It is still probing the source of the other funds.
The arrest of Jain by ED on May 30 was due to the fear of the agency that he may destroy evidence of money laundering after the probe team found he had started transferring some of the land parcels, purchased using the shell companies, to some of his close relatives. “Transferring the proceeds of crime is a serious offence under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act,” a source had told TOI.
The ED has mapped transactions of about Rs 28 crore in five shell companies, allegedly controlled by Jain, which had bought lands in north and northwest Delhi between 2010 and 2014. The same set of companies had continued to receive “unsecured loans” from Kolkata-based shell companies in lieu of cash transferred to them through hawala (illegal channel), the ED had earlier told the special court here.
The ED had attached assets worth Rs 4.81 crore in April this year after it had established a money trail of an equivalent amount that was found to be laundered by the minister and his family members. Now, the agency has gathered fresh evidence of money laundering, taking the total receipts of Jain-controlled shell firms to over Rs 16 crore. At least 4.6 crore of these funds were received in 2015-16, sources said, when Jain was a minister in the AAP government.
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