With the arrest of 4 individuals, the Indian Customs and its Hong Kong equal have uncovered an enormous case of Commerce-Primarily based Cash Laundering (TBML) involving Hong Kong-based exporters and Indian importers, in keeping with an official assertion issued by Union Ministry of Finance. The syndicate laundered round $65 million by importing low-cost artificial diamonds falsely labelled as real gems.
The Directorate of Income Intelligence (DRI) was the primary to interrupt the ring, which concerned the import of cheap faux diamonds to an Indian Particular Financial Zone (SEZ) for the aim of remitting international money abroad.
Through the probe, it was additionally found that some real diamonds have been imported however have been later swapped with artificial diamonds and smuggled outdoors the SEZ. The importing enterprise was additionally found to be exporting diamond-studded jewelry to Hong Kong and some different nations at exorbitant costs. Surprisingly, whereas nearly all of the claimed inflated worth of imports was despatched out of the nation by banking channels, remittances acquired for exports have been comparatively negligible at about 0.2%, exhibiting that this commerce was used to launder cash outdoors the nation.
Investigations additionally revealed that cash was transferred (laundered) from the importing entity’s checking account to abroad suppliers in Hong Kong beneath the guise of fee for the import of ‘diamonds’. In line with the data gathered, the mastermind of this trade-based cash laundering was positioned in Hong Kong.
“Additional investigations resulted in arrest of 4 individuals in India beneath the provisions of the Part 104 of the Customs Act, 1962. The Indian Customs issued Present Trigger Discover (SCN) for seized items, whereby Hong Kong based mostly entities have been additionally made notices, who nonetheless refused to reply and current themselves in entrance of Indian Customs. It’s pertinent to notice that in nearly all circumstances offenders of TBML function by entrance firms abroad in a bid to flee enforcement motion in India,” reads the official assertion.