Lucknow News: GST Fraud Unveiled; 246 Shell Companies Involved in Rs 557 Crore Scam, 3 Major Operators Arrested

Lucknow News: Input Tax Credit (ITS) fraud involving 246 shell companies totaling Rs 557 crore has been uncovered by GST officials, who also arrested three major operators. Account books, challans, e-way invoices, and other documents were found during forensic examination of the seized laptops and smartphones belonged to both masterminds. Additionally, WhatsApp voice and chat conversations showing phoney GST invoices and unlawful cash flow activities have been discovered. According to the Finance Ministry, a preliminary inquiry by GST officials also suggested that bank employees were involved in the establishment of accounts in the names of bogus businesses.

Unraveling the Phoney Billing Schemes

According to a Finance Ministry release, the Meerut Zonal Unit of the Directorate General of GST Intelligence (DJJI) discovered two significant phoney billing schemes involving 246 shell or shell businesses that issued bogus ITS worth Rs 557 crore. According to the report, a racket had connections to shell firms that were discovered by the Noida Police in June 2023. Two syndicates led by masterminds Anand Kumar and Ajay Kumar, who created and ran phoney shell corporations, have been busted, according to the Finance Ministry. From the secret offices of both the masterminds in Delhi's Adhyapak Nagar and Paschimpuri, several documents relating to phoney businesses, including counterfeit stamps, debit and credit cards, chequebooks, Aadhaar cards, PAN cards, etc., have been found.

Masterminds' Connection to Identity Fraud Revealed by Ministry

According to the ministry, "this shows the close nexus of these masterminds with touts/agents who specialise in obtaining IDs of poor, needy, and vulnerable people in exchange for meagre financial gains." Both of the masterminds were taken into custody."These two syndicates have sent invoices totaling Rs 3,142 crore, including Rs 557 crore in ITC, to almost 1,500 beneficiary enterprises through 246 fictitious firms. "The main beneficiary companies are in Delhi, and others are spread out over 26 other states," he said. The owner of one of these beneficiary firms, Vikram Jain, has also been detained as part of the inquiry. On July 26, the three defendants were brought before the Economic Offences Court in Meerut and sent to detention till August 8.

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