40 Chinese among 150 people booked by Mumbai EOW for fraudulently becoming directors of Indian firms

PTI, Apr 18, 2022, 2:46 PM IST

Mumbai: The Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of the Mumbai Police has registered 34 FIRs against 150 people, including 60 foreigners- 40 of them from China- for allegedly violating laws regarding the registration of new companies and for fraudulently becoming directors of Indian companies, a police official said on Monday. The official said the FIRs were registered between April 1 to 15 and added that four more First Information Reports will be registered till Tuesday. Among the 60 foreigners against whom the cases are filed, 40 are from China and the rest from Singapore, the UK, Taiwan, the USA, Cyprus, the UAE, and South Korea.

As per the preliminary investigation, the accused had given false statements to the ROC (Registrar of Companies), Mumbai, an EOW official said. In some cases, the communication addresses of the companies were found changed. The 34 FIRs also name more than 30 Chartered Accountants (CAs), 30 Company Secretaries (CSs) and directors of companies. As per the complaints filed by the ROC, Mumbai, the foreign nationals became directors and owners in Indian incorporated companies fraudulently.

The FIRs have invoked various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) for cheating, criminal conspiracy and criminal breach of trust along with section 447 (fraud) of the Companies Act.

These complaints were registered at the Marine Drive police station. The first FIR was registered in February. The EOW has now taken over the probe, the official added.