Marine foods firm defrauded banks of ₹225 crore: CBI

Company claimed that documents were washed away in 2015 floods

The Central Bureau of Investigation has registered a case against a city-based marine foods firm on charges of defrauding five banks, including Indian Overseas Bank and the State Bank of India, of ₹225.15 crore after availing itself of credit facilities.

Authorised by the SBI, IDBI, ICICI and the Central Bank of India, Indian Overseas Bank led the consortium in lodging a complaint with the Economic Offences Branch of the CBI. It stated that M.s Oceanic Edibles International Limited (OEIL) and its directors Joseb Raj Arockiasamy, Vimalla Joseb, Arockiasamy James Walter and Arockiasamy Dominic Savio availed themselves of credit facilities.

Loan amount diverted

The accused persons fraudulently submitted forged/false bills and falsified the books of accounts to get loans. After availing the credit facilities, they diverted the loan amount to their own accounts/third party accounts and overseas payments without doing any genuine business as claimed. The securities hypothecated to the banks were not available.

OEIL was initially engaged in the business of shrimp hatchery and then established units for processing/marketing vegetables, fruits, and marine products at Marakkanam, near Chennai.

The complainant bank said a suspicious transaction was observed during the period of demonetisation since the company had not deposited any amount between November 8, 2016, and December 30, 2016, which raised doubts about the genuineness of the cash balance in the books of the firm.

While the company claimed that all records, including the book of accounts, had been lost in the 2015 floods, forensic auditors who visited the company’s office located at Wellington Estate, Egmore, were informed that electrical installations on the premises were safe and were not affected since power supply had been cut in advance.

Untenable

“It is believed that they had been forewarned by the TNEB and in turn they have advised the building occupants of power stoppage. Hence the contention of the subject company that all of M/s OEIL’s records including book of accounts had been lost is untenable since there appears to be no basis,” IOB said in the complaint.