Goyal siphoned Jet funds to family, tax havens: ED

NEW DELHI: Jet Airways founder Naresh Goyal siphoned off carrier's money to family members, including his daughter's production company, and to tax havens "without any rationale" and for "personal enrichment and gains", the Enforcement Directorate (ED) claimed a day after arresting him.

- Neeraj Chauhan

ED's money laundering probe is based on a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) first information report filed in May pertaining to a ₹538 crore fraud with the state-run Canara Bank, which was among the lenders to the airline.

The total non-performing assets, or outstanding debt, of the Jet Airways group comes to around ₹5,951 crore.

"It was revealed during the course of investigation that proceeds of crime were diverted and siphoned off in the garb of professional consultancy expenses which were paid to various persons and entities. As per the forensic audit report by Ernst & Young, Jet Airways (India) Ltd or JIL has paid an amount of ₹1,152 crore in the form of professional and consultancy expenses from FY 2011-12 to FY-2017-18," the federal agency said while producing Goyal before a court in Mumbai on Saturday.

The special PMLA court remanded Goyal in the ED custody till September 11 

"ED investigation revealed that in the garb of professional services and consultancy, dubious expenses to the tune of ₹1,000 crore were booked, personal expenses of Naresh Goyal and his family members were booked in the company, and unaccounted transactions have been credited to the foreign accounts of the promoters," the agency that investigates financial crimes said in a statement.