Iqbal Kaskar made benami properties under brother Dawood Ibrahim's name

Dawood Ibrahim

All the crimes that Iqbal Kaskar committed and the money he made was all done in the name of his brother and underworld don Dawood Ibrahim. This is true in more than one way. The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has now booked Kaskar in a money laundering case after discovering benami properties that he had made under Dawood's name.

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Kaskar is currently under arrest under extortion charges. So far, Thane police's investigations have revealed that Kaskar and his aides were targeting builders and jewellers. "Kaskar, through his punters and estate agents, would collect information on disputed deals in Thane. Then he would 'solve' the disputes through extortion, and make profits using Bhai's (Dawood's) name," said a police officer.

Preferred property
Kaskar preferred to park these profits in properties, rather than keeping cash. The Thane Police revealed Kaskar's involvement in many dealings involving properties worth crores. The cops shared this information with the Centre, following which the ED kicked off a money-laundering probe.

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"We suspect that he made many benami properties from the extortion money. These properties are in the names of people known to him. We are in process of identifying these properties, and their valuation will give us an idea as to how deep-rooted Kaskar's extortion business was," said an ED official.

ED to seek custody?
Once the Thane Police's custody of Kaskar is over, the ED may take custody so they can grill him for details on the benami properties. ED sources said that so far, four benami properties have been linked to Kaskar's extortion business. These properties are located in Mumbai and Thane. Sources in ED yesterday said that Kaskar and his aides, Israr Z Saiyyad, Mumtaz A Shaikh and others have been booked under relevant sections of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).

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The ED will also investigate if there are any links to Dawood and Anees Ibrahim in the money laundering charges.

Also read: How Dawood's brother, Iqbal Kaskar ran his extortion business in Mumbai

What is benami property?
Benami means without name. It refers to any property that is not under the name of the individual who bought it. This can include property held in the name of a spouse or child.

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