The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has seized a private jet worth approximately Rs 14 crore in connection with a money laundering investigation against Hyderabad-based Falcon Group (Capital Protection Force Pvt. Ltd.) and its promoters. The company and its chairman, Amar Deep Kumar, are accused of defrauding investors of crores of rupees through a Ponzi scheme, official sources confirmed on Saturday.
The case stems from a local police FIR against Falcon Group, its CMD Amar Deep Kumar, and several others. According to sources, Kumar fled the country using the same jet before authorities could take action. Efforts to contact him or his company for a response have been unsuccessful.
Officials from the ED’s Hyderabad office discovered that the 8-seater business jet, identified as ‘N935H Hawker 800A’, landed at Hyderabad’s Shamshabad international airport on Friday. The aircraft, purchased for around USD 1.6 million in 2024, was owned by Kumar’s private charter company, Prestige Jets Inc.
A search of the jet was conducted under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), during which the ED recorded statements from the flight crew and several close associates of Kumar who were present at the time. Based on their findings, officials seized the aircraft, suspecting it was acquired using illicit funds from the alleged Ponzi scheme.
The ED sought a general declaration regarding the jet’s movements from the Customs department, which revealed that Kumar, along with another individual, had left the country onboard the aircraft on January 22.
With the total fraud estimated at Rs 850 crore, the ED has launched a full-scale investigation into the case.
