The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has filed a prosecution complaint before the Special Court under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) in Ranchi against four key individuals accused of orchestrating a massive ₹734 crore input tax credit (ITC) fraud linked to the Goods and Services Tax (GST) regime.

The accused—Shiva Kumar Deora, Mohit Deora, Amit Kumar Gupta, and Amit Agrawal—were arrested on May 8 and are currently in judicial custody. According to the ED, these individuals were at the helm of a sophisticated operation involving the creation and use of fake shell entities to generate and circulate fraudulent tax credits.

The ED’s investigation, initiated on the basis of several complaints from the Directorate General of GST Intelligence (DGGI), Jamshedpur, uncovered a web of around 135 shell companies floated on paper. These entities were used to issue bogus invoices worth approximately Rs. 5,000 crore, despite there being no actual movement of goods or services.

By generating and selling fake ITC valued at Rs. 734 crore, the syndicate allowed various firms to fraudulently reduce their GST liabilities. The ED noted that the fake credits were sold on commission to willing buyers, effectively enabling tax evasion on a massive scale.

So far, the ED has traced and attached immovable properties worth Rs. 5.29 crore, seized cash totaling Rs. 8.98 crore, and frozen bank balances amounting to Rs. 62.90 lakh as part of its crackdown on the racket.

Additionally, extensive search operations were conducted in multiple locations across Jharkhand and West Bengal to trace the money trail and gather evidence.

The prosecution complaint marks a significant development in one of the largest GST-related money laundering cases currently under investigation, highlighting the growing nexus between tax fraud and organized financial crime.

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