Delhi: Lalit Goyal, the chairman of real estate group IREO, was detained last week at the Delhi Airport when he was about to take a flight out of the country. He was arrested on November 16 by the Enforcement Directorate.
The tycoon was detained last week at the Delhi Airport when he was about to take a flight out, reportedly to the US. A lookout circular had been put out against Mr Goyal by the Enforcement Directorate, which investigates financial crimes.
“Goyal placed under arrest as he was not cooperating with the investigation,” a senior official of the agency said.
Mr Goyal was stopped at the airport and questioned on Thursday. According to media reports and officials said he was “evasive”, so his arrest was necessary.
IREO has been under investigation since 2010 over a case involving the violation of the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA). The company is also accused of moving $77 million in home buyers money and investment and shareholding to and off shore trust.
The Indian Express in an report published on October 12 had revealed that the company had moved US $ 77 million to offshore Trusts even as home buyers and investors had approached authorities and courts against the company for return of their money.
The IREO Group flagship IREO Private Limited is reeling in losses — Rs 500 crore in 2018-19.
According to revelations made in Indian Express’s Pandora Papers expose, the group co-founder Lalit Goyal, whose sister is married to BJP leader Sudhanshu Mittal, had moved assets, investments, and shareholdings, worth an estimated $77 million, to an offshore trust structure which included four entities registered in the British Virgin Islands much before the group got into trouble. This was revealed in internal documents of Trident Trust, a global corporate services company.
Mr Goyal and his lawyers have denied any such wrongdoing by Mr Goyal regarding the money laundering case.
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