ED attaches Rs 579 crore assets in Amtek Auto bank fraud case

New Delhi: In one of the biggest bank fraud cases, in which Rs 27,000 crore is outstanding to govt banks, ED Wednesday attached about Rs 579 crore worth of assets of Gurugram-based Amtek Auto Ltd and other group entities. This is in addition to over Rs 5,000 crore of assets of the company and its promoters attached by the agency earlier last year.

The fresh attachments include land worth Rs 342 crore in Punjab & Rajasthan, fixed deposits and bank balances of Rs 113 crore, and mutual funds and shares valued at Rs 124 crore. The probe against Amtek was initiated after SC asked ED to track laundered proceeds of crime as the victim banks — Bank of Maharashtra and IDBI Bank — had to take 80% haircut on loans extended to the group entities after the company went into insolvency.

The money trail revealed Amtek had floated over 500 shell companies to siphon off bank loans & invested ‘proceeds of crime’ to purchase personal properties.

Promoter of Amtek Auto Arvind Dham was arrested by Enforcement Directorate last year after it found all of Amtek’s assets were ‘proceeds of crime’ and held through several companies “beneficially owned” by Dham.