NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Friday allowed Enforcement Directorate (ED) to attach properties of JP Morgan, which was engaged in transactions with the now-defunct Amrapali Group, after the agency detected Rs 187 crore as proceeds of crime. JP Morgan had allegedly siphoned off home buyers money in violation of the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) and FDI norms.
The ED told the apex court that it has prima facie identified Rs 187 crores in the accounts of JP Morgan, as proceeds of crime under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) and it needs permission to attach its properties to recover the same. A bench of Justices Arun Mishra and U U Lalit, which took up the matter via video conferencing, granted the permission to the ED to attach the properties of the multi-national firm, a senior lawyer associated with the case said.
Additional Solicitor General Sanjay Jain, appearing for the ED told the bench that the agency has prima facie identified Rs 187 crore in the accounts of JP Morgan, which according to them are proceeds of crime under the FEMA. He said the court had on December 2 last year restrained the agency from attaching any properties and, therefore, now it needs permission to attach them, to move ahead as per the law.
(With agency inputs)