The Central Crime Branch (CCB) in Chennai has arrested a 30-year-old man who had been absconding for over two years in a GST fraud case involving fake company creation and large-scale tax evasion.
The case began after a Chennai resident, Manisha, lodged a complaint stating that her PAN and Aadhaar details were misused to incorporate a fake firm named MMM Enterprises. During the initial inquiry, State Tax Officer Vijayalakshmi from the Intelligence Wing found that the accused had obtained a GST registration using the complainant's old PAN address and even opened a current bank account in the firm's name.
Further investigation by GST officials revealed that the company carried out financial transactions without any actual business activity, leading to massive tax dues. On July 27, 2021, the complainant was informed that Rs 1,74,76,963 was payable to the government as GST and penalty.
Following her complaint, the CCB's Fake Document Wing registered a case on September 14, 2021, and later filed a charge sheet before the Egmore Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Court against three accused. However, the first accused, Shamsul Huda, repeatedly skipped court appearances and went into hiding. A warrant was issued against him on May 30.
A special CCB team finally traced Huda and arrested him near the ICICI Bank at Rajaji Salai in Mannady. He has now been produced before the court.
The arrest marks a significant step in cracking down on identity theft-based GST frauds, which continue to rise across India.
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