Pune, March 27 (NationPress) The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has confiscated agricultural land valued at Rs 22.51 crore located in Savardari village, Taluka Khed, Pune, due to its involvement in a fraudulent letter of credit (LC) scheme that resulted in a loss of Rs 56.81 crore to the State Bank of India (SBI), according to an official report.

The ED's Mumbai Zonal Office executed the property attachment under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002, focusing on a money laundering case associated with bank fraud attributed to Topworth Pipes and Tubes Pvt Ltd (TPTPL) and other parties, as stated by the investigative agency.

This land is registered under the name of Abhay Lodha, the ED noted.

To date, the ED has attached assets belonging to Abhay Lodha and entities under his beneficial ownership totaling Rs 38.11 crore in efforts to recover the total Proceeds of Crime amounting to Rs 56.81 crore linked to him.

The investigation was prompted by an FIR filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), specifically the Bank Securities and Fraud Cell (BS&FC) in Mumbai, against TPTPL, its Director Abhay Lodha, and others for various offenses under sections of the IPC, 1860, and the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988.

According to the ED, TPTPL fraudulently discounted 24 bills across 11 Letters of Credit from SBI.

The bank was subsequently denied payment for these bills by the LC issuing banks due to their rejection, leading to a significant financial loss for SBI.

The ED's findings indicated that TPTPL, under the leadership of Abhay Narendra Lodha, illicitly secured funds through the discounting of Letters of Credit (LCs) without actually supplying any goods.

Evidence of forged invoices, counterfeit lorry receipts, and falsified documentation was presented to banks, yielding illicit gains for the accused while causing losses to the banks. In numerous LC transactions, goods were either not delivered or only partially supplied, yet full amounts were fraudulently collected, the ED reported.

As the principal promoter and decision-maker of the Topworth Group, Abhay Narendra Lodha oversaw financial operations and orchestrated the creation of forged documents and fund routing, according to the ED.

The investigation also suggested that the funds acquired through deceitful LC discounting were not allocated for legitimate business operations but were redirected to settle pre-existing debts and funneled through various group and shell companies, effectively layering the Proceeds of Crime.

Previously, the ED had provisionally attached assets worth Rs 15.60 crore in this matter and submitted a Prosecution Complaint to the Special Court (PMLA) in Mumbai.

During the ongoing investigation, immovable property owned by Abhay Lodha was identified, leading to an attachment order issued on March 26 to seize the properties valued at Rs 22.51 crore, as confirmed by the ED.