The Enforcement Directorate has filed a chargesheet against Lalit Goyal, the vice-chairman-cum-managing director of IREO Group of companies, and others for allegedly diverting about ₹.1,225 crore collected from customers of real estate projects in Haryana and Punjab.
ADVERTISEMENT
The agency's money laundering probe is based on more than 30 cases registered in Delhi, Haryana and Punjab.
It is alleged that over 1,050 home buyers and investors of projects, including IREO Fiveriver, The Corridors, IREO City, Gurgaon Hills in Haryana and IREO Waterfront Township in Punjab, had made advance payments. However, none of them have received their booked flats or plots in the past five years.
According to the ED, IREO Group could not complete its projects due to diversion and siphoning of funds. Customer receipts to the tune of ₹.1,225 crore were transferred outside India in the form of redemption, purchase, transfer and buy-back of shares and on other pretexts. The accused also round-tripped funds to India through various entities based in tax havens like British Virgin Islands and Mauritius.
ADVERTISEMENT
The group resorted to showing fictitious expenses in the books of account and wrote off project in progress, interest free loans and advances to sister concerns.
The agency alleged that Mr. Goyal was the settler and named beneficiary of an overseas Trust that owned and controlled entities holding assets outside India. The recently leaked “Pandora Papers” had also named four such entities, which held assets worth $77.73 million (about ₹.575 crore) abroad.
Mr. Goyal was arrested on November 16, 2021, after a look-out circular was issued against him. Since then, he is judicial custody.