ED concludes raids at Raksha Bullion, Classic Marbles in money laundering case; seizes huge gold and cash
Sep 14, 2022
New Delhi [India], September 14 : The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Wednesday concluded a search operation at four premises belonging to Mumbai-based wholesale jeweller Raksha Bullion and Classic Marbles in Rs 2,296.58 crore money laundering probe, and seized a huge amount of cash and gold.
The searches were conducted in connection with the money laundering probe in the case against Parekh Aluminex limited, which is accused of duping banks and taking loans to the tune of Rs 2,296.58 crore. Parekh Aluminex Limited, Mumbai based firm, is the largest manufacturer and exporter of Aluminium Foil Containers.
Earlier, the ED had recorded a money Laundering case against Parekh Aluminex Limited on March 8, 2018, under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002.
It is alleged that Rs 2,296.58 crore was siphoned off by layering through various companies.
In a statement, the ED said the money was routed to various accounts in the context of providing unsecured loans and investments.
"The same was not the purpose of taking the loans and there were no agreements in place for such transactions."
Earlier an amount of Rs 46.97 crore dated June 25, 2019, and Rs 158.26 crore dated September 11, 2019, were attached by the ED in this case.
During the course of search action, the ED said, keys to private lockers were found on the premises of Raksha Bullion, said the agency, adding "on searching the private lockers, it was found that the locker operation was being done without following the proper norms".
"No KYC was followed and no CCTV camera was installed at the premise. There was no in-and-out register. Searching the locker premise revealed that there were 761 lockers of which 3 belonged to Raksha Bullion," said the ED.
"On operating the lockers 91.5 kgs of Gold and 152 kg of Silver were found in two lockers and the same was seized. An additional 188 kgs of Silver was also seized from the premises of Raksha Bullion. The total value of seized items is Rs 47.76 crore."
