Jalandhar, Nov 16 (IANS) The ED seized Rs 22 lakh during searches at four premises of an engineering goods export company in Punjab’s Phagwara for receiving payments through unauthorised channels against articles shipped to Syria, Iran, Turkey and Colombia, an official said on Sunday.

The Directorate of Enforcement (ED), Jalandhar Zonal Office, conducted the search operations on Friday at the premises linked to Phagwara-based firm Opal Engineering Corporation (OEC) involved in the export of engineering goods.

During the search, Indian currency of the amount of Rs 22 lakh, incriminating documents and electronic evidence were recovered and seized.

The ED also collected evidence revealing that export transactions were also settled in cash in India and abroad.

The firm faces the action for alleged violation of provisions of FEMA, 1999, by receiving payments from unrelated third parties without following the due procedure.

The ED investigation revealed that the company exported goods to countries — Syria, Iran, Turkey and Colombia — but the export proceeds were not realised as per guidelines prescribed under FEMA, 1999 and RBI guidelines, said a statement.

The proceeds were adjusted against payments received from unrelated parties, from different countries and by taking payments into personal accounts, the ED said.

There were no tri-partite agreements or any other documentary proof for adjustment entries from unrelated parties. The firm used an intimation to a fake Customs email address to claim the genuineness of the same, it said.

In a separate case, the ED seized Rs 70 lakh in cash and froze 110 mule bank accounts during searches at five locations across Delhi-NCR and Jaipur against a narcotics trafficking and online betting network that used Dubai-based cryptocurrency wallets to transfer money, an official said.

The Directorate of Enforcement (ED), Delhi Zonal Office, conducted search operations under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002, on Friday, the official said in a statement.

The case pertains to the seizure of 82.53 kilograms of cocaine by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) in November 2024, which led to the registration of Complaint No. 36/2024 by NCB against several individuals and entities involved in a global drug trafficking syndicate.

–IANS

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