ED attaches hotel, bungalow and luxury cars of drug smuggling kingpin Jaffer Sadiq

CHENNAI: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has attached properties worth Rs 55.30 crore of Chennai-based businessman Jaffer Sadiq, who was accused of smuggling pseudoephedrine abroad, under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).

Among the properties attached as proceeds of crime are JSM Residency Hotel in Purasawalkam, a luxurious bungalow and seven luxury vehicles acquired through criminal activities.

The ED said Jaffer Sadiq and his associates laundered the proceeds from their drug operations by investing in various legitimate ventures, including real estate, film production, hospitality and logistics, through a network of bank accounts controlled by Sadiq and his family members.

"The illicit cash was layered through financiers and recorded as unsecured loans in financial statements. The laundered funds were used to acquire both immovable and movable assets in the names of Sadiq, his wife Ameena Banu, Mydeen Gani and benamis named Mohammed Mustafa S and Shri Jamal Mohammed," said the agency.

In February, the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) busted a godown in New Delhi where pseudoephedrine, a controlled substance, had been hoarded to be smuggled to countries like New Zealand and Australia disguised as a health mix.

In March, Jaffer Sadiq, the alleged kingpin behind the cartel, was arrested.

The Enforcement Directorate later joined the investigation to probe the money laundering angle and arrested Jaffer Sadiq in June. His wife Ameena Banu and brother Saleem were also included as accused.

"Jaffer Sadiq, in collusion with his brother Mohammed Saleem and others, was actively involved in exporting and concealing pseudoephedrine, and the entities in which he held different positions were used to channelise and layer the proceeds of crime. This entire setup was used to route the Proceeds of Crime (POC) earned from the illicit drug trafficking," said the ED.


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