ED Raids Six Places in Jammu & Kashmir's 250-Crore Money Laundering Probe

The Enforcement Directorate conducted searches in Jammu and Kashmir across six locations linked to a 250-crore money laundering case involving a fictitious housing society and irregular loans. The Anti-Corruption Bureau previously filed charges against key individuals involved in the fraudulent activities.

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The Enforcement Directorate (ED) conducted searches across six locations regarding a 250-crore money laundering case in Jammu and Kashmir. The investigation covered sites connected to the former chair of Jammu and Kashmir State Cooperative Bank Limited. This probe aligns with the ongoing case linked to the Jammu and Kashmir Bank.

ED officials emphasized that the fraudulent activities occurred through the fictitious River Jhelum Cooperative Housing Building Society. Operations were carried out by the ED's Srinagar office, leveraging its search and seizure authority under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).

The Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) had previously filed charges against Hilal A Mir, the fictitious housing society's chair, and the ex-chair of J-K State Co-operative Bank Limited, Mohd Shafi Dar. This pertained to offenses under the Indian Penal Code and the Prevention of Corruption Act in August 2020.

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ACB's investigation uncovered Mir's application to acquire financial assistance of 300 crores from the J-K Co-operative Bank Ltd. The bank then sanctioned a loan of 223 crores without following the required formalities, disregarding crucial details about the society's operations.

The probe revealed that the River Jhelum Cooperative House Building Society lacked proper registration with Jammu and Kashmir's Registrar Co-operative Societies. Mir, in collusion with Dar and others, fabricated a fake registration certificate to secure the unauthorized loan.

Although the loan funds were transferred to the landowners' accounts, the land itself was not mortgaged to the bank. ACB's investigation traced misappropriated funds amounting to 223 crores, freezing 187 crores.