ED attaches assets worth ₹22.86 crore in Amber Dalal case

ED has attached assets worth ₹22.86 crore from consultant Amber Dalal, linked to a ₹600 crore Ponzi scheme, amid ongoing investigations.

MUMBAI: The Mumbai unit of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) has provisionally attached movable and immovable assets worth around ₹22.86 crore as part of its money-laundering investigation against consultant Amber Dalal, the proprietor of M/s Ritz Consultancy Services, and others. The attached assets include immovable properties, including land parcels and residential flats in Mumbai and Thane.

ED attaches assets worth ₹22.86 crore in Amber Dalal case

Dalal is accused of taking money from investors through a suspected Ponzi scheme by promising high returns and then absconding with their investments after giving initial returns, according to ED. ED had begun its probe in the case based on a case registered by the Mumbai police against Dalal. It was alleged that the amount of money raised by Dalal was more than ₹600 crore from around 1,300 investors.

Dalal had earlier been arrested by the Economic Offences Wing of Mumbai police and is currently in judicial custody.

The agency’s searches carried out on Friday provisionally attached movable assets including insurance policies and investments of Dalal, his family members and an alleged accomplice of his, apart from certain land parcels and residential flats located in Mumbai and Thane. Earlier, a residential flat belonging to the accomplice, located at Dubai and United Arab Emirates (UAE), and valued at around ₹4.95 crore, had been provisionally attached in the case as well.

The ED probe had revealed that a part of the funds collected from the investors had allegedly been used for purchase of various properties by Dalal and, also, diverted to several individuals, including the accomplice under ED’s scanner. It was also revealed in the probe that the funds collected from the investors were also allegedly used to pay out monthly returns to old investors, and were not invested, as was claimed by Dalal, ED sources said.

ED had carried out searches earlier also in the case, on June 21 and September 3. During those search operations, movable assets to the tune of around ₹39 crore were frozen/seized. Assets frozen/attached in the case so far is around ₹67 crore.