The Enforcement Directorate has attached 76 immovable and 38 movable properties worth ₹71.60 crore in its money laundering investigation involving Gurugram-based 32nd Avenue Group. The action follows FIRs alleging cheating, forgery, criminal breach of trust and conspiracy linked to an investment scheme estimated at ₹500 crore. According to the ED, investors were allegedly offered commercial units, fixed rental income and buy-back arrangements, while investigators found allegations involving multiple sales, altered property layouts and disputed documents. The allegations remain under investigation.
ED Attaches ₹71.60 Crore Properties in 32nd Avenue Group Money Laundering Case
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has attached 76 immovable and 38 movable properties associated with the Gurugram-based 32nd Avenue Group in a case related to an alleged investment scheme of Rs 500 crore.
The Enforcement Directorate has attached properties worth ₹71.60 crore linked to the Gurugram-based 32nd Avenue Group money laundering case.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has said that the action was taken based on an investigation into an alleged Ponzi scheme worth ₹500 crore involving investors and commercial properties.
The group and its promoters faced several First Information Reports registered by Delhi Police and Gurugram Police, and the probe was initiated by the federal agency.
The FIRs in cases of alleged cheating, criminal breach of trust, forgery and conspiracy name promoter-directors Anubhav Sharma and Dhruv Sharma among others.
The ED said its headquarters office carried out the latest property attachment under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002, popularly known as PMLA.
ED Details Alleged 32nd Avenue Investment Modus Operandi
The ED probe revealed that investors were allegedly induced to buy commercial units with the promise of long-term leases and fixed rental income.
The agency said investors were also offered buy-back arrangements and periodic returns that increased, making it an investment structure that, in all probability, promised predictable financial benefits.
However, the ED claimed that many commercial units were either not handed over to the investors or were subsequently taken back.
The agency also alleged that the same commercial premises were sold or leased to multiple persons, sometimes after changing unit numbers, areas and layouts.
The probe said original units were broken up into smaller spaces and alleged forged or fabricated sale and conveyance documents were used to transfer properties.
The agency said the rental payments were made for a limited period to sustain the arrangement, but those payments were subsequently stopped while the property remained under the control of others.
The probe has also unearthed instances where tax deducted at source (TDS) was deducted from rental payments, but was allegedly not deposited with the Income Tax Department.
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Funds Routed Through More Than 50 Companies and LLPs
The ED claimed that the investor funds were routed and layered through a web of over 50 companies and limited liability partnerships, or LLPs.
The agency said many of these entities were allegedly operating from common or non-functional addresses and were apparently used for routing and layering of funds.
The probe also looked into the alleged use of money from the sale of properties on 32nd Avenue and related projects to buy properties in Goa and Maharashtra.
The latest is of over 76 immovable properties, including commercial units in Gurugram and land or other properties spread over various parts of Goa and Maharashtra.
The ED also attached 38 movable properties, including balances in a number of bank accounts and an inland vessel linked to the probe.
The agency’s move is the latest major development in the case, which has allegations of wrongdoing involving investors, property transactions, financial routing and multiple corporate entities.
Searches Conducted Across Delhi-NCR, Goa, Jaipur and Mumbai
Earlier, the ED had conducted searches on April 13 and April 14 at seven premises linked to the 32nd Avenue Group.
Those searches were used by investigators to probe properties, financial documents and entities allegedly linked to the group in Delhi-NCR, Goa, Jaipur and Mumbai.
The enforcement action is consequent upon investigations by Delhi Police and Gurugram Police into the predicate offenses that form the underlying basis of the money laundering investigation.
The key accused - Anubhav Sharma, Dhruv Sharma, Mamta Sharma and Shirin Sharma - are presently in judicial custody in the predicate case, the agency said.
The allegations are sub judice. Attachment of properties is an investigative action under PMLA and does not amount to a final adjudication on criminal liability.
The case shows the financial and legal complexities that can come about when assured return property investment structures are bridged over multiple entities and transactions, for Sprouts News.
The next steps are likely to include tracking alleged proceeds, reviewing property ownership and financial records, and figuring out how investor funds moved through the corporate network.
Further proceedings will be held to determine the legal status of the attached assets as well as the allegations against the accused as the investigation and related predicate cases continue.
