New Delhi, Nov 28 (UNI) The Enforcement Directorate (ED), Mumbai Zonal Office, on Friday stated that it recently conducted search operations at twelve residential and office premises in Pune. The searches targeted loan borrowers, car dealers, and a former branch manager of the State Bank of India (SBI) in connection with a vehicle loan fraud case at the bank’s Pune branch.
The ED initiated its money laundering investigation based on FIRs registered by the CBI ACB, Pune, and the Shivajinagar Police Station, Pune, under various sections of the Indian Penal Code and the Prevention of Corruption Act.
The agency alleged that Amar Kulkarni, while serving as Chief Manager at the SBI University Road Branch in Pune between 2017 and 2019, abused his official position. He is accused of conspiring with Aditya Sethia, an Auto Loan Counsellor at SBI, Pune, and certain borrowers to cheat the bank by fraudulently processing and recommending high-value car loans.
The investigation revealed that the accused borrowers fraudulently availed themselves of high-value car loans using forged documents. It was further alleged that the public servant, Amar Kulkarni, improperly processed and recommended these loan proposals in violation of the bank’s lending policy, without verifying the bogus documents. In many cases, fake quotations with inflated amounts were submitted to increase the margin money included in the loan, and the loans were approved using false documentation.
During the investigation and subsequent search proceedings, it was uncovered that various high-value cars, including brands like BMW, Volvo, Mercedes, and Land Rover, were purchased by borrowers based on false documents in conspiracy with the loan agent and the SBI branch manager.
The searches led to the identification of various immovable properties purchased by the loan borrowers, the recovery of incriminating documents, and the seizure of several high-end cars from their premises under Section 17 of the PMLA.
Further investigation is in progress.
