Two more arrested in GST evasion and fake invoicing scam

Bhopal: In a breakthrough in the ongoing investigation into GST evasion and fake invoicing racket, the MP State Economic Offences Wing (EOW) has arrested two more suspects — Sheikh Zafar of Anuppur and Raja Sheikh of Bhopal. These arrests bring the total number of suspects held in the case to three, including the alleged mastermind Vinod Sahay alias N K Khare, who was arrested earlier.

The case (EOW Case No 102/25) involves fraudulent invoicing worth Rs 512 crore and fake Input Tax Credit (ITC) claims of Rs 134 crore, orchestrated through a network of shell companies and falsified transactions. The fraud has caused massive revenue losses to the government over the past few years.

According to EOW officials, Sheikh Zafar operated two fictitious firms—Amber Coal Depot and Anam Traders—at the direction of the main suspect, Vinod Sahay. These firms, though non-operational, were used to generate fake transactions with other shell entities like Maa Reva Traders, Namami Traders, and Abhijeet Traders, also linked to Sahay.

These fake firms were shown to be supplying coal to large thermal power companies such as MSP Power, B S Sanjhe Power, and Prakash Industries, using fabricated documents including invoices, e-way bills, truck numbers, and weight slips—all without any actual supply.

Zafar was arrested from Bilaspur on July 2, 2025, and has been remanded to police custody till July 7 for further interrogation.

The second suspect, Raja Sheikh, proprietor of Mehak Enterprises, was arrested from Bhopal on July 1, 2025, and remanded to judicial custody a day later. Investigations revealed that Raja showed fictitious cement transactions worth Rs 6 crore with fake firms controlled by Sahay—Abhijeet Traders, Namami Traders, and Ankita Steel & Coals—to fraudulently claim Rs 1.20 crore in ITC.

Seals of other suspicious firms and incriminating documents were seized during the search of his premises.

Bhopal: In a breakthrough in the ongoing investigation into GST evasion and fake invoicing racket, the MP State Economic Offences Wing (EOW) has arrested two more suspects — Sheikh Zafar of Anuppur and Raja Sheikh of Bhopal. These arrests bring the total number of suspects held in the case to three, including the alleged mastermind Vinod Sahay alias N K Khare, who was arrested earlier.

The case (EOW Case No 102/25) involves fraudulent invoicing worth Rs 512 crore and fake Input Tax Credit (ITC) claims of Rs 134 crore, orchestrated through a network of shell companies and falsified transactions. The fraud has caused massive revenue losses to the government over the past few years.

According to EOW officials, Sheikh Zafar operated two fictitious firms—Amber Coal Depot and Anam Traders—at the direction of the main suspect, Vinod Sahay. These firms, though non-operational, were used to generate fake transactions with other shell entities like Maa Reva Traders, Namami Traders, and Abhijeet Traders, also linked to Sahay.

These fake firms were shown to be supplying coal to large thermal power companies such as MSP Power, B S Sanjhe Power, and Prakash Industries, using fabricated documents including invoices, e-way bills, truck numbers, and weight slips—all without any actual supply.

Zafar was arrested from Bilaspur on July 2, 2025, and has been remanded to police custody till July 7 for further interrogation.

The second suspect, Raja Sheikh, proprietor of Mehak Enterprises, was arrested from Bhopal on July 1, 2025, and remanded to judicial custody a day later. Investigations revealed that Raja showed fictitious cement transactions worth Rs 6 crore with fake firms controlled by Sahay—Abhijeet Traders, Namami Traders, and Ankita Steel & Coals—to fraudulently claim Rs 1.20 crore in ITC.

Seals of other suspicious firms and incriminating documents were seized during the search of his premises.