Gujarat: A significant seizure was made by the Ahmedabad Zonal Office of the Directorate of Enforcement (ED) in relation to a fraudulent stock market investment scheme that preyed on regular investors.

In accordance with the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002, the ED obtained many crores’ worth of criminal profits from Himanshu, also known as Pintu Bhavsar, and other defendants.

The ED found 110 kg of silver bullion, worth about Rs 2.4 crore, 1.296 kg of gold bullion, worth about Rs 1.7 crore, 39.7 kg of silver jewelry, Rs 38.8 lakh in Indian currency, and foreign currencies, worth about Rs 10.6 lakh, during the search and seizure operations.

A number of property-related papers that were thought to be connected to the profits of crime were also confiscated.

An FIR filed under many sections of the Indian Penal Code by the Kheralu Police Station in the Mehsana district served as the basis for the inquiry.

According to the accusation, the defendants deceived investors by not investing the money or giving it back after luring them in with promises of large profits from stock market investments. Rather, the money was purportedly misappropriated for private purposes.

At least six more FIRs have been filed against the suspects in various states, with an estimated total fraud value of Rs 10.87 crore, according to further research.

In order to raise money from the public, the suspected mastermind, Himanshu alias Pintu Bhavsar, and his friends established many offices in Mehsana, Visnagar, and Vadnagar, according to the ED.

Workers were employed to contact prospective investors on a daily basis and lure them in with claims of large stock market returns. Serious regulatory infractions were also discovered throughout the investigation.

The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) discovered that Himanshu Bharatkumar Bhavsar had abused an Investment Advisor Certificate in his personal capacity for the gain of three businesses: Vishwas Stocks Research Pvt. Ltd., Dalal Stocks Advisory Pvt. Ltd., and Devki Stocks Pvt. Ltd.

Without the necessary SEBI registration, these organizations were functioning as unregistered investment advisers. Himanshu Bhavsar was among the firms and their directors that SEBI held accountable in its ruling for infractions pertaining to unapproved investment advice operations.

According to the ED, further investigation into the case is in progress as investigators look for other assets and determine the whole scope of the fraud’s money laundering network.