The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has submitted a supplementary prosecution complaint(PC) against Mohsin Ahmed Khilji(Accused No-4) and Sharifmiya Amirmiya Shaikh(Accused-5) in connection with the Malegaon money laundering case. The special PMLA court is expected to take cognizance of the charges soon.
According to the ED prosecution complaint, both accused are suspected to have amassed benami properties worth over Rs 100 crore. Also, one of the accused namely Mohsin Ahmed Khilji has been found to be actively involved in various anti-social activities including Love Jihad.
The ED’s prosecution complaint(PC), submitted to the PMLA court, outlines a large-scale and elaborate money laundering racket operated through a sophisticated,intricate PAN-INDIA network masterminded by absconding accused Mehmood Abdul Samad Bhagad, alias “Challenger King.” The investigation revealed that Khilji and Shaikh , played a crucial role in setting up shell companies and dummy accounts using identity documents of unrelated individuals.These entities were used to open multiple bank accounts, which served as conduits for laundering illicit funds. The probe further revealed that these accounts received substantial sums from various sources, including 14 Nashik Merchant Cooperative Bank (NAMCO) Bank accounts and five Bank of Maharashtra accounts, pointing to an intricate financial web designed to obscure the origins of illegal proceeds.
The prosecution complaint stated that bank transactions linked to shell entities controlled by Shaikh and Khilji revealed that Rs 62 crore in illicit funds was accumulated in these accounts from a number of accounts opened in name of various shell entities and the same were subsequently either transferred to the other sets of mule accounts or withdrawn in cash. Further analysis of the transactions of these accounts revealed that cash amounting to more than Rs. 28 Crores was withdrawn from these accounts within a short span of October to November 2024.
The ED has identified this case as a classic example of money laundering, wherein Bhagad, along with Khilji and Shaikh, engaged in multiple illicit financial activities, Scrutiny of the documents,records,digital devices collected and statements recorded under various provisions of the PMLA, have revealed that on the instruction of mastermind and absconding accused Bhagad, both the accused were deeply involved in several illegal businesses such as making arrangements for entry transactions,arranging bank credits in exchange for cash, dealing in USDT and other cryptocurrencies through cash transactions, and executing hawala operations both within India and abroad.
The Investigators also found that Bhagad’s instructions were relayed through encrypted voice notes on social messaging platforms, including WhatsApp, to manage and execute the syndicate’s financial operations.
As part of its probe into the massive money laundering racket, ED analysed thousands of bank accounts, uncovering crores of transactions routed through dummy accounts in less than a year.The agency conducted large-scale searches at over 60 locations across Maharashtra and Gujarat, targeting key operatives linked to the financial network. Raids on business premises of prominent hawala operators in Ahmedabad and Mumbai led to the seizure of approximately Rs 15 crore in cash. Further investigations into more than 50 bank accounts connected to the accused resulted in the freezing of balances exceeding Rs 6 crore.
The investigation also exposed a highly sophisticated cybercrime network involved in extorting money from the public through various online frauds, such as investment fraud, digital arrest, online gaming, online betting, illegal forex trading and different other types of cybercrimes, and laundering the crime money into untainted as procured from legal sources, by way of transactions made through a maze of fake accounts, and several other methodologies, all of which are being investigated under PMLA. These dummy accounts were used for various cybercrime related activities spread across India and accordingly, several notices were issued by National Cybercrime Reporting Portal (NCRP) in these bank accounts. It has also been revealed that these accounts are also subject matter of investigation by the cyber crime division of various districts across India.
