Goa: ED attaches assets spread over 5L sq mtrs in 'land grab' case

New Delhi, Dec 1 (PTI) Immovable assets spread across more than 5 lakh square metres in "premium" locations of Goa have been attached under the anti-money laundering law in an alleged land fraud case, the ED said on Monday.

The properties are located in areas like Anjuna, Assagaon and Ucassaim, etc. and are valued (market rate) at Rs 1,268.63 crore, the federal probe agency said in a statement.

A provisional order for attaching these assets was issued under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) on November 27.

"These properties were illegally acquired by the group led by Shivshankar Mayekar using fabricated and forged land title documents, including allotment certificates, certificates of final possession, Auto de Demarcaco (certificate of demarcation), historical deeds of sale, deeds of gift, and other falsified records," the agency said.

The money laundering case stems from a Goa Police FIR that was filed against a man named Yeshwant Sawant apart from some others for allegedly defrauding the Communidade of Anjuna in relation to land situated at Survey No. 496/1-A in Anjuna.

"The accused allegedly procured fraudulent mutation of the land in their names by submitting fabricated and forged documents before the concerned authorities, and thereafter, sold parts of the said land to third parties, thereby generating additional proceeds of crime," it said.

Mayekar, the ED alleged, was a "key conspirator" who possessed multiple land parcels in Goa that were "illegally" acquired in the names of his friends and relatives.

He was arrested by the ED in October and is currently lodged in jail under judicial custody.

This is a case of where a "systematic" modus operandi was adopted by the group led by Mayekar, which involved acts like identifying vulnerable land parcels and fabricating title documents such as fake sale deeds, forged gift deeds and counterfeit certificates, the agency alleged.

The ED has widened its probe in this case and has asked the local police to file an FIR so that the agency can strengthen its investigation. PTI NES RT