Gurugram, Jul 24 (PTI) The Enforcement Directorate (ED), Gurugram zonal office, on Thursday claimed to have arrested three promoters and former directors of M/s Universal Buildwell Private Limited, in connection with a money laundering case involving more than Rs 1,000 crore.

The trio -- Raman Puri, Varun Puri and Vikram Puri -- who were absconding from court summons for more than seven years, were declared proclaimed offenders in multiple predicate offences and were recently apprehended by the Delhi Police, the ED said in a statement.

M/s Universal Buildwell Private Limited is a real estate company, involved in developing residential and commercial properties, including projects like Universal Trade Tower, Universal Business Park, and Universal Aura. The company was placed under Corporate Insolvency Resolution Process (CIRP) in 2018.

The accused were produced before a special court in Gurugram on the strength of a production warrant and have been remanded to ED custody till July 29, it said.

The case pertains to fraudulent mobilisation of funds from homebuyers by the three on the basis of false assurances of project completion by 2010 and promised returns from commercial projects. They also allegedly defrauded several financial institutions and entered into fake agreements for personal gain, officials said.

The agency said the three raised more than Rs 1,000 crore over 12 years through eight real estate projects in Gurugram and Faridabad, including Universal Trade Tower, Universal Greens, Universal Business Park, Aura, Universal Square, Market Square, The Pavilion and Universal Prime.

However, only a portion of the funds was used in the construction, it said.

"The accused are also charged with criminal misappropriation, cheating, forgery and embezzlement of money to acquire properties for their personal gain through fraud. They are under interrogation", an ED official said.

The probe was initiated on the basis of more than 30 FIRs registered across Delhi-NCR under various IPC sections, it said. PTI COR OZ OZ

Money laundering alleged in large real-estate fraud leads to arrest and ED custody of multiple promoters. The Enforcement Directorate arrested three promoters and former directors in an alleged money laundering case involving fraudulent mobilisation of funds from homebuyers and financial institutions. The accused, previously absconding and declared proclaimed offenders, were produced before a special court and remanded to ED custody. Allegations include diversion of receipts from multiple real-estate projects, use of fake agreements, and offences of misappropriation, cheating, forgery and embezzlement; the probe is based on over thirty FIRs and follows the company's placement in Corporate Insolvency Resolution Process.