Jalandhar, Feb 12 (IANS) The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has attached five immovable properties worth Rs 1.36 crore in a money laundering case against a former official of the Punjab government’s Food and Civil Supplies department, an official said on Thursday.

An official of ED’s Jalandhar Zonal Office said the seized properties are linked to Rakesh Kumar Singla — the then Deputy Director in Department of Food and Civil Supplies — and his wife Rachna Singla, the official added.

The properties were attached under the provisions of Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002, in connection with a case of disproportionate assets, wherein Rakesh Kumar Singla had accumulated disproportionate assets to the tune of Rs 1.36 crore.

The ED initiated investigation on the basis of an FIR registered by Vigilance Punjab Police in this matter.

The ED investigation revealed that Singla allegedly collected bribes, from which he accumulated disproportionate assets.

“These proceeds of crime were further laundered by Singla, his wife and their family members by depositing the cash in their bank account and by arranging sham entries from various persons and entities and investment in immovable properties,” an ED statement said.

In another case, the ED’s Gurugram Zonal Office, took action in a large-scale international Tech Support Scam — targeting American citizens — by provisionally attaching immovable properties worth Rs 90.21 crore through an order dated February 9.

The ED filed a charge sheet on February 10 before a Special Court (PMLA) in Gurugram against eight accused of this case, under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002, consequent to arrest of Chandra Prakash Gupta, one of key conspirator of this case.

The charge sheet has been filed under Sections 44 and 45 of the PMLA for the offence of money laundering as defined under Section 3, read with Section 70, and punishable under Section 4 of the PMLA, 2002, against CSPRO Technology (OPC) Private Limited, Chandra Prakash Gupta, and other persons, including Aakash Kumar Dubey, Pankaj Kumar Jha, and several employees.

–IANS

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