ED registers money laundering case agnst meat exporter Moin Qureshi

New Delhi: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has registered a money laundering case against controversial Delhi-based meat exporter Moin Qureshi, who is under the scanner of probe agencies for alleged tax evasion and hawala-like dealings.

With the agency filing the fresh case under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), proceedings against the businessman will now be carried out under criminal laws as against the current ones being conducted under the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) and Income Tax Act which are civil in nature.

Officials said the agency slapped the fresh charges after taking cognisance of the I-T department's charge sheet (also called prosecution complaint) against Qureshi in their alleged tax evasion case in a local court here sometime back.

"The new rules notified by the agency state that in any case if the prosecuting agency (tax department here) has filed a complaint in a competent court and the court has admitted it, such a case can be taken up for probe under PMLA," they said.

The ED has taken over this case under FEMA early this year after the I-T department shared documents indicating hawala and alleged contravention of forex laws by the businessman and his business entities based here.

The ED had alleged that Qureshi has sent "huge amount of funds" through the hawala route to Dubai, London and few other overseas destinations in Europe.

The agency early this year had also conducted searches on Qureshi's premises and had also questioned him.

It is expected that he may be summoned again for questioning and his assets may be attached as part of the fresh proceedings under money laundering laws.

The I-T department, during its probe, had found Qureshi had 11 bank lockers which were in the names of his employees and associates but the articles belonged to the businessman.

The lockers were operated by the employees of AMQ Group of Qureshi claiming that over Rs 11.26 crore in cash and jewellery worth over Rs 8.35 crore were found in these lockers.