ED arrests key man in Rs 1,257 crore Syndicate Bank loan fraudulent case

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has arrested a key conspirator in Rs 1,257 crore Syndicate Bank loan fraudulent case, the agency said on Monday. The federal agency arrested Himanshu Verma alias Himansh Verma, a resident of Chandigarh, on October 15.

Verma was produced before a special court in Jaipur, and the Judge remanded him to the ED custody for 10 days till October 25.The agency initiated a money laundering investigation in the case against the officials of erstwhile Syndicate Bank (now Canara Bank) and others under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 based on the First Information Reports (FIRs) registered and charge sheet filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

ED's Jaipur-based Zonal Office initiated the investigation under which it is revealed that from 2011 to 2016, main fraudster Bharat Bomb, Udaipur (Rajasthan) based Chartered Accountant, in collusion with the bank officials defrauded erstwhile Syndicate Bank to the tune of Rs 1,257 crore by way of fraudulent loans and fake cheque discounting.

During an investigation conducted by the ED, the agency said it was revealed that Himanshu Verma was a key associate of the Bharat Bomb and he received approximately Rs 85 crore proceeds of crime generated out of the fraud.

The ED has attached properties worth Rs 14.88 crore of Himanshu Verma and his family members."Himanshu Verma received proceeds of crime in various bank accounts operated and controlled by him through the complex maze of transactions for placement, layering and integration of the tainted funds," said the ED.

The agency said that Verma is a hardcore criminal and multiple criminal FIRs are registered against him and his family members in various Police stations in Punjab and Chandigarh. Verma is wanted by Punjab Police and the CBI too.

ED said that Verma changed his name to Himansh Verma and fraudulently sought a police verification report got issued a new passport in name of Himansh Verma and travelled abroad via Nepal.

"The passport authorities canceled the new passport after knowing about his criminal history," the ED said. ED had earlier issued multiple summonses to Verma to join the investigation but he always remained non-cooperative in the investigation and never appeared except once.