ED confiscates Jet Airways’ properties worth Rs 538 cr in money laundering case

New Delhi [India], November 1 (ANI): Enforcement Directorate (ED) has provisionally attached properties worth Rs 538.05 crore of Jet Airways (India) Limited (JIL) under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 (PMLA), ED said in an official statement on Wednesday.
The attached properties include 17 residential flats, bungalows and commercial premises. Located in London, Dubai and various cities in India, these properties are in the name of various companies like Jetair Private Limited and Jet Enterprises Private Limited, Naresh Goyal, his wife Anita, and son Nivaan, added the statement.
The complaint alleged various offences, including cheating, criminal conspiracy, criminal breach of trust, and criminal misconduct, committed by M/s JIL and its promoters and directors, resulting in a significant Non-Performing Asset (NPA) amounting to Rs 538.62 Crore.
The ED's investigation has uncovered that JIL diverted loans from a consortium of banks led by SBI and PNB. Naresh Goyal orchestrated a large-scale financial fraud through the systematic diversion of JIL's funds, disguising them as inflated General Sales Agent (GSA) commissions and making substantial, unexplained payments to various professionals and consultants, the federal agency said in a statement.
This also included the provision of loans to JetLite Limited, a 100% subsidiary for the acquisition of Air Sahara, which were subsequently written off by including provisions in the balance sheets.
The ED's investigation has established that GSA commissions were unjustly disbursed to entities such as Jet Air Private Limited (the GSA of JIL for India), Jet Airways LLC Dubai (the Global GSA of JIL), and JIL wrongfully covered the operational expenses of these GSAs. All of these GSAs were beneficially owned by Naresh Goyal, added the statement.
Consequently, the management of JIL complied with Naresh Goyal's directives and continued to make substantial payments, despite these entities providing no significant services after 2009. The funds received were further utilized by Naresh Goyal and his family for personal expenses and investments.
Earlier, ED had conducted searches and survey at the premises linked to Naresh Goyal, Chartered Accountants of JIL and others. ED arrested Naresh Goyal on 1.9.2023 and he is presently in Judicial Custody. ED has filed a prosecution complaint before the Hon'ble Special Court (PMLA) on October 31, 2023, and additional investigations are still in progress. (ANI)