ED attaches assets worth Rs 37.38 cr of SKSTPL in PMLA case
Enforcement Directorate
New Delhi: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Wednesday said it has attached immovable property in the form of land and buildings worth Rs 37.38 crore in connection with a Prevention of Money Laundering case pertaining to the bank fraud committed by Sri Krishna Stockists & Traders Private Limited (SKSTPL) and its directors.
The ED initiated a money laundering investigation on the basis of three FIRs filed by the CBI, on the complaints of the lending banks. The Industrial Finance Corporation of India Limited (IFCI Limited), Industrial Development Bank of India (IDBI) and Canara Bank complained that SKSTPL and Sri Krishna Agriprocess India Pvt Ltd (SKAIPL) through their Directors had availed of large amounts of loans by furnishing false and fabricated balance sheets of the company, forged and grossly inflated valuation reports of mortgaged assets, fabricated work estimates.
The loan money was diverted and the account become NPA, causing a net loss to the banks of Rs 528.26 crore.
The ED investigation established that SKSTPL and SKAIPL represented by its managing director Thota Kanna Rao had secured credit facilities to the extent of Rs 313 crore from IFCI, IDBI and Canara Bank during the period 2014-15. The credit facilities were availed towards construction of storage facility for preserving, processing and resale of agricultural produce.
All the credit facilities were secured through mortgage of immovable properties, stocks which were highly inflated in connivance with the employees of APITCO, MITCON and of V C Rammohan, the then DGM of IFCI.
Rao had also manipulated the records of accounts and managed to obtain fake work completion certificates and submitted the same to the financial creditor to justify the loans availed.
The funds trail investigation by the ED shows that the loan amounts were withdrawn in cash and laundered by the accused to purchase various land parcels.
The ED has identified 57 landed properties mostly located in West Godavari district of AP which were acquired for Rs 37.38 crore and attached the same.