ED moves to seek Cayman data in TMC fund probe

New Delhi: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) is in the process of reaching out to authorities in the Cayman Islands through a letter rogatory (LR) to obtain details of funds and financial transactions involving a Cayman Islands-based entity that has come under scrutiny in its money laundering investigation into the Trinamool Congress (TMC) and aviation company Carewell Aviation, people in the know told ET.

The proposed judicial request is aimed at obtaining information that is not readily available to ED sleuths, including details of the Cayman-based entity, its beneficial owners, bank accounts and the source and ultimate destination of funds allegedly transferred through the offshore jurisdiction, people quoted above added. The development assumes significance as the ED has already identified a Cayman Islands link in the financing of an Agusta helicopter acquired by a Carewell group entity. According to the agency's findings made public in July, an unsecured loan of US$1.7 million, or around ₹14-16 crore at the prevailing exchange rate, was arranged in 2023 from a Cayman Islands-based entity for the purchase of the helicopter.

The federal agency will now seek documentary and financial records from the jurisdiction to establish the complete money trail and determine the actual beneficial purpose of the offshore transaction.


According to people quoted above, the probe aims to identify persons or entities that controlled or benefited from the Cayman-based company, the circumstances under which the loan was sanctioned, the source of funds, the originating accounts, and the manner in which money was transferred into the aviation-financing structure. TMC has strongly denied all allegations of money laundering and financial irregularities, alleging that the agency's actions are politically motivated. The LR request could also seek banking records, incorporation and ownership documents, transaction statements, correspondence relating to the loan and information concerning any onward movement of funds, sources added.

The Cayman Islands component forms part of a wider ED investigation into the alleged diversion and layering of TMC funds through Carewell Aviation. The agency has alleged that around ₹160 crore was transferred from TMC bank accounts to Carewell Aviation and a related entity, largely between April 2023 and June 2026. Carewell routed ₹82.96 crore to another newly-incorporated related entity for acquisition of an Embraer Legacy 600 aircraft and an Agusta helicopter. The ED has alleged that the aircraft and helicopter, acquired using funds originating from the party's corpus, were subsequently leased back to TMC. It has described the arrangement as "dubious" and said the investigation was aimed at determining the actual beneficial purpose of the transactions.