The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has issued a provisional attachment order under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act attaching immovable assets worth Rs 300.40 crore in a money laundering case against Mantri Group for cheating home buyers.
Home buyers of the Mantri Group’s projects styled as “Mantri Serenity”, “Mantri Web City” & “Mantri Energia” residential projects were allegedly cheated.
Castles Vista Private Limited and Buoyant Technology Constellations Pvt. Ltd. (both (subsidiaries of Mantri Developers Pvt. Ltd.) induced the home buyers with rosily painted schemes, showing misleading brochures, falsification of delivery time lines and window dressing.
But the flats have not been delivered even after seven to ten years of taking deposits from prospective home buyers, the ED said in a statement. The PMLA probe was initiated on the basis of FIR registered by the Subramanyapura Police Station, Bengaluru under various Sections of the Indian Penal Code.
Multiple FIRs have also been registered by the home buyers against Mantri Developers Private Limited, its subsidiaries, directors and promoters for cheating the public by inducing the home buyers with false promises at Cubbon Park Police Station, Bengaluru.
The ED had arrested Sushil P Mantri, founder and promoter director of Mantri Developers Pvt. Ltd. real estate entity in connection with the ongoing investigation under PMLA on June 24.
Further Investigation revealed that Mantri Developers and its subsidiaries diverted home buyers’ money to other projects which is a criminal breach of trust.
“The homebuyers’ money which was given to the developers in good faith has been diverted for purposes other than construction of projects resulting in criminal misappropriation and diversion of Rs 300.40 crore out of the funds collected from home buyers for wrongful purposes, thereby committing the offence of money laundering under section 3 of PMLA,” the agency added in its statement.