Bengaluru, June 1 (IANS) The ED seized jewellery and cash amounting to Rs 1.27 crore and froze bank accounts with a balance of Rs 18 crore after conducting searches at the premises of Deepak Cables and its officials in a Rs 899.35 crore bank fraud, an official said on Monday.

The Directorate of Enforcement (ED), Bengaluru Zonal Office, conducted the search operations under section 17 of the PMLA, 2002, at various premises of the persons and entities related to Deepak Cables on May 21 and May 29, said the ED.

During the search operations, various incriminating documents belonging to Deepak Cables (India) Limited, K. Venkateswara Rao, Director of Deepak Cables India Ltd (DCIL), Mahesh Agarwal (Kolkata), Director of Adhunik Corporation Ltd., and others were seized under the provisions of the PMLA, 2002, said the ED statement.

The ED initiated an investigation on the basis of an FIR registered by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) against Deepak Cables, Rao, and others, for allegedly cheating a consortium of banks led by SBI to the tune of Rs 899.35 crore.

The company and the accused cheated the bank by obtaining large credit facilities and diverting the loan funds, the ED said.

The company allegedly submitted falsified financial statements and manipulated books of accounts to secure and continue availing bank loans, it said.

The ED investigation revealed that the accused used multiple entities for fictitious sales and purchases, circular trading, and issuance of fake corporate guarantees.

These transactions were utilised to artificially inflate turnover, increase drawing power from banks, evergreen existing loans, and divert the Proceeds of Crime through related companies and personal accounts, thereby concealing their illicit origin, the ED said.

It was also found that large amounts of loan funds were diverted to related entities under Rao’s control, without any business rationale and with a doubtful purpose.

–IANS

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