New Delhi, The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Monday said that they have provisionally attached immovable and movable properties worth Rs 56.81 crore in the form of agricultural land, plots, shops, offices, flats, FDs and bank accounts belonging to Bharat Bomb, Shankar Lal Khandelwal and their associates in connection with a Prevention of Money Laundering case pertaining to the Syndicate Bank loan fraud of Rs 1,267.79 crore.

With the present attachment the total attachment in the case stands at Rs 537.72 crore.

Earlier, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), had lodged several FIRs against the officials of erstwhile Syndicate Bank (now Canara Bank) and others under various sections of the IPC read with sections of Prevention of Corruption Act. After a thorough probe, the CBI had submitted a charge sheet against the accused before a Delhi Court.

The ED initiated a probe under PMLA against the accused on the basis of the FIRs and charge sheet of the federal probe agecny.

The ED learnt in its investigation that between 2011 and 2016, main fraudster Bharat Bomb, Udaipur (Rajasthan) based Chartered Accountant, in collusion with the bank officials defrauded erstwhile Syndicate Bank to the tune of Rs 1,267.79 crore.

"The modus operandi of the fraudsters included getting loans sanctioned in their name or in the name of the family members. The accused issued fake cheque through the shell companies controlled by Bharat Bomb. The loans were never repaid by the fraudsters," said the ED official.

The ED further learnt that proceeds of the crime generated out of the fraud were transferred by Bharat Bomb to various bank accounts operated/controlled by the accused, through complex maze of transactions for placement, layering and integration of the tainted funds.

The accused invested these tainted funds in immovable properties in the name of himself, his family members, associates, employees, tribal persons, fictitious firms, companies, etc.

The ED had so far issued four Provisional Attachment orders towards cumulative attachment of assets worth of Rs 478.66 crore. Additionally, a seizure of Rs 2.25 crore in the form of Demand Draft was also carried out.

Further investigation in the matter is on.