The attached properties include land and factory building of Amway at Tamil Nadu’s Dindigul district, plant and machinery, vehicles, bank accounts and fixed deposits, the ED statement said.
The Enforcement Directorate on Monday provisionally attached assets worth Rs 757.77 crore belonging to Amway India Enterprises Private Limited, under the anti-money laundering law, accused of running a multi-level marketing scam.
The attached properties include land and factory building of Amway at Tamil Nadu’s Dindigul district, plant and machinery, vehicles, bank accounts and fixed deposits, the ED statement said.
Out of the total Rs, 757.77 crores of assets attached under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), immovable and movable properties are worth Rs 411.83 crore while the rest are bank balances of Rs 345.94 crore kept in 36 accounts belonging to Amway, it said.
The federal agency accused the company of running a multi-level marketing ‘scam’ where prices of most of the products offered by the company were “exorbitant as compared to the alternative popular products of reputed manufacturers available in the open market,” news agency PTI reported.
A money laundering probe by the ED found that the American multi-level marketing company is running a pyramid fraud in the guise of direct selling multi-level marketing network. The agency found that the prices of most of the products offered by the company are exorbitant as compared to their alternatives.
“Without knowing the real facts, the common gullible public is induced to join as members of the company and purchase products at exorbitant prices and are thus losing their hard earned money. The new members are not buying the products to use them, but to become rich by becoming members as showcased by the upline members. Reality is that the commissions received by the upline members contribute enormously in hike of prices of the products,” the probe agency statement read.
“The entire focus of the company is about propagating how members can become rich by becoming members. There is no focus on the products. Products are used to masquerade this MLM Pyramid fraud as a direct selling company,” the ED said.