ED attaches properties of Patna realtor under PMLA

Assets worth Rs 2.62 crore of a Patna-based real estate company have been attached under the anti-money laundering law, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) has said.

New Delhi:Assets worth Rs 2.62 crore of a Patna-based real estate company have been attached under the anti-money laundering law, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) has said. The action has been taken against Patliputra Builders Limited whose managing director Anil Kumar Singh was arrested by the agency in September. The two immovable properties that have been attached are located in Jharkhand's capital Ranchi.

The ED case against the builder group was filed after taking cognisance of a Patna police FIR and charge sheet. The police alleged that Singh and Patliputra Builder Limited and other companies were "involved in the commission of offences like cheating, fraud, dishonesty and grabbing of public money, and Singh embezzled Rs 5.82 crore payable to employees of 'The Newspapers & Publications Ltd' and utilised the money for acquisition of properties in the name of his company (Patliputra Builders Limited)".

The ED alleged that Singh was "non-cooperative and deliberately avoided the summons issued to him under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA)." It added that non-appearance and non-submission of documents called for, clearly showed his "malafide" intention and hence he was arrested on September 7. "Proceeds of crime generated in cash has been layered through acquisition of properties in the name of his (Singh's) company and use of banking channels in order to conceal the actual origin of tainted money," the ED said in a statement issued on Friday.

PTI