NT Reporter
Panaji
The Enforcement Directorate (ED), Panaji zonal office, probing money laundering in the alleged multi-crore land scam, has provisionally attached an immovable property situated at Anjuna, Bardez, valued at around Rs 6.82 crore.
The ED had initiated its investigation based on a chargesheet filed by the special investigation team (SIT) of the Goa police against Mohammed Suhail, his wife Anjum Shaikh, and Nure Faizal Bhatkar.
According to the ED, the property is a land parcel admeasuring 1,950 square metres, and has been attached under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act.
“In the instant case, Suhail orchestrated a criminal plot to fraudulently transfer the title of land belonging to the parents of a complainant, with the sole intent of causing wrongful loss to the victims and obtaining wrongful gain for himself and his associates,” the ED said.
The ED investigation has unearthed the specific modus operandi employed by Suhail.
It revealed that Suhail is a habitual offender involved in several land-grabbing cases across the state, for which multiple FIRs have been registered by the police.
The probe established that the accused prepared forged or fake birth certificates to create a fictitious person and also fabricated death certificates of the rightful owners. Using these documents, a false deed of succession was created to show one person as the sole legal heir.
Subsequently, a fraudulent power of attorney was executed in favour of Suhail’s associate Bhatkar. This was then used to transfer the property to Suhail’s wife, Anjum Shaikh, through a sale deed dated September 29, 2010, concealing the fraudulent nature of the acquisition.
The property was later sold to one Shaikh Salim on April 15, 2011, the probe agency added.
The ED investigation further revealed a significant undervaluation of the property to project the proceeds of crime as legitimate.
“While the registered value in the sale deed to Salim was Rs 50 lakh, the investigation established the fair market value at Rs 6.82 crore as on April 15, 2011. Furthermore, the investigation uncovered cash transactions over and above the registered value, which were utilised by Suhail for loan repayments and personal expenses,” the ED said.
