Daijiworld Media Network - New Delhi
New Delhi, Nov 18: The Enforcement Directorate’s Bhopal Zonal Office has provisionally seized nine premium real estate assets in Dubai, invoking provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002. These luxurious apartments and commercial units, collectively valued at Rs 51.70 crore, were traced to the proceeds of an extensive bank fraud.
According to the agency, the assets are linked to a massive Rs 1,266.63-crore fraud involving Advantage Overseas Private Limited (AOPL), its directors, guarantors, and key individuals, foremost among them Shrikant Bhasi, the company’s significant beneficial owner. The losses were incurred by the State Bank of India’s Shahpura Branch.
Investigators found that the Dubai properties—located across Centurion Residence (Dubai Investment Park Second), Dubai Silicon Oasis, Liwa Heights (Al Thanyah Fifth), Business Bay, and World Trade Centre Residences—were purchased using laundered funds generated through AOPL’s operations. In what the ED describes as an attempt to conceal ownership, Bhasi later transferred these foreign assets to his daughter via gift deeds executed between 2022 and 2023, without any monetary consideration.
The ED states that the funds used to acquire the properties originated from illegal merchanting trade activities, diversion of bank loans, forged documentation, circular trading, and complex layering of tainted money across multiple linked entities. A critical aspect of the case involves 12 Foreign Letters of Credit (FLCs) worth USD 200 million, which devolved on SBI in April–May 2018 after AOPL failed to meet required margins and could not fund LC rollovers. This forced the bank to settle dues with overseas suppliers, resulting in massive losses.
The agency further reports uncovering an extensive network of Indian and foreign companies allegedly used to obscure money trails, divert funds, and purchase assets both within India and abroad.
Further investigation into the laundering network and associated assets is currently underway.