HYDERABAD: The Hyderabad zonal office of the Enforcement Directorate invoked provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002 and attached assets with a book value of Rs 1.01 crore allegedly acquired by means of extortion and other criminal activities by Mohammed Kaisar alias Kaisar Pahelwan, a rowdy sheeter of Habeebnagar police station.
The ED initiated an investigation based on several FIRs registered against Kaisar and others. The FIRs alleged involvement of Kaisar in several criminal activities such as murder, attempt to murder, extortion, gambling, cricket betting, land settlement, etc.
Kaisar started his criminal career as a pickpocket and over the years became a notorious rowdy sheeter and amassed huge wealth out of criminal activities. He had been externed for one year in 2011 and had also been detained under the Preventive Detention Act.
In a release, the ED said that through his criminal activities related to the scheduled offences under PMLA, Kaisar acquired proceeds of crime in the form of cash which he utilised to acquire several immovable properties in the name of his wife.
The sale considerations for all these properties acquired from 2007 to 2020 were entirely in cash, the ED said.
ED investigation revealed that Kaisar and his family did not have legitimate financial wherewithal to purchase assets worth crores out of their meagre declared income. The attached assets are in the form of immovable properties in Hyderabad acquired in the name of Shaheda Begum, the wife of Kaisar. The market value of these properties is expected to be much higher, the ED said.