Bank fraud: ED attaches properties worth Rs 31 crore

The attached assets are located in and around Hyderabad and Visakhapatnam and belong to Narender Kumar Patel, his family members and associates.

Hyderabad: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has provisionally attached half a dozen immovable and four movable properties held in the name of Narender Kumar Patel, Madhu Maruswamy, Jigishben Patel and Inrhythm Energy Limited, totalling Rs 31.89 crore under Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 (PMLA) in a bank fraud case.

The attached assets are located in and around Hyderabad and Visakhapatnam and belong to Narender Kumar Patel, his family members and associates.

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The ED initiated investigation on the basis of three FIRs registered by CBI and one FIR registered by Hyderabad police against Narender Kumar Patel, Madhu Maruswamy and others, for defrauding several banks to the tune of Rs 155.43 crore, according to a press release.

It has also filed prosecution complaint against Narender Kumar Patel and seven others. Immediately after booking FIRs by CBI, Narender Kumar Patel, his wife Jigishben Patel and Madhu Maruswamy fled India and settled in the US. With the help of immigration authorities, the ED managed to intercept Narender Kumar Patel on January 16, 2021 when he landed at Ahmedabad international airport. He was arrested under PMLA Act 2002. He was subsequently remanded to ED custody and is presently in judicial custody. The remaining two main accused are still in USA.

Further investigation revealed the modus operandi adopted by Narender Kumar Patel and Madhu Maruswamy to obtain loans from various banks. They fraudulently obtained loans of Rs 65 crore from SBI, Rs 37 crore from erstwhile State Bank of Bikaner and Jaipur, Rs 25 crore from EXIM Bank, Rs 12 crore from DCB Bank, Rs 10 crore from erstwhile Dena Bank and Rs 9 crore from Bank of Maharashtra totalling to Rs 157 crore, by submitting fabricated property documents and properties with legal disputes, the press release said.

The release said all these loans were siphoned off by Narender Kumar Patel and Madhu Maruswamy using a complex web of transactions through its sister concerns and third party entities by making accommodation entries. Part of the proceeds of crime are in possession of the fugitive accused in America. They also diverted loan funds for paying amounts to third party mortgagors, consultants, interest to banks to further obtain loans and for their personal benefits.

The part of proceeds of crime was invested in a private company either directly or indirectly. After identifying these properties, a provisional attachment order was issued on March 15 and prosecution complaint was filed on March 16 before the PMLA special court.