The Enforcement Directorate as part of its investigation into the smuggling of raw human hair from Hyderabad to China via Myanmar, has identified three Mizoram-based shell entities.
The sale proceeds, to the tune of hundreds of crores of rupees in cash which were later being remitted to several merchants across the country, were found with M/s. St. Mary’s Gem Industries and M/s. Sun Moon Human Hair of Champai town in Mizoram and M/s. Thari Enterprises in Aizwal, the ED said in a release on Monday.
The cash so generated in the operation was being used for illegal compensatory payments through unauthorised channels.
According to ED, one Lucas Thangmangliana of Champai district was the chief facilitator of the ‘mammoth hawala operation’. Several incriminating evidence, including documents, hand-written diaries, devices and ₹ 1.20 crore in cash was seized in the operation so far. And under Prevention of Money Laundering Act, the ED has also issued freezing orders against 139 suspicious bank accounts.
It further stated that the search operations were conducted at multiple locations, from Hyderabad to Aizwal and upto Champai town in the Mizoram-Myanmar border, on February 9 and 10 leading to the present revelations. A full investigation was underway.
The ED had opened money laundering investigations after it noticed hawala payments to local hair traders in the fund trail investigation of online Chinese betting mobile applications. Following ED’s complaint to Hyderabad police’s central crime station a case was registered.
It was alleged that one M/s. Nayla Family Exports Private Limited through its director Md. Ibrahim Patel exported human hair using a benami Import Export Code of multiple local proprietary firms.
It also observed that large scale domestic sale of raw human hair took place from Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, to Guwahati and Kolkata. “All this domestically sold hair was ultimately finding its way to China via Myanmar and the sale proceeds were surprisingly being received in shell bank accounts in Mizoram,” it noted.
