HC extends custody remand of Vivo India executives in money laundering case

Three Vivo-India executives were sent in two more days of custody of the Enforcement Directorate on Tuesday, according to a Patiala House Court ruling. The executives are under investigation for possible money laundering related to the Chinese smartphone manufacturer and other matters. The Enforcement Directorate (ED) recently arrested the three accused, including the interim CEO, as part of an ongoing investigation into the central agency’s money laundering probe. The accused, who were taken into custody by the Enforcement Directorate on December 22, 2023, were Hemant Munjal, a consultant for VIVO, Hong Xuquan, also known as Terry, the interim CEO of VIVO India, and Harinder Dahiya, the company’s chief financial officer. On Tuesday, Additional Sessions Judge Aparna Swami, after hearing the submissions at length from both sides, decided to send all three accused to 2 days of further remand to ED. Advocate Manish Jain and Simon Benjamin appreciated the Enforcement Directorate in the matter and Senior Advocates Siddharth Aggarwal and Arvind Nayyar appeared for the accused persons in the matter. In this case, the Enforcement Directorate arrested four accused in October, including a Chinese national and the MD of Lava International. Recently, the Patiala House Court of Delhi took cognizance of a prosecution complaint (chargesheet) filed by the Enforcement Directorate in connection with a Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) case related to the Chinese mobile company Vivo involving Chinese national Guangwen Kuang, Lava International’s MD Hariom Rai, Nitin Garg and Rajan Malik under the different sections of the Money Laundering Act. According to the sources, ED has also named VIVO Company as an accused in the matter of allegedly cheating the Government of India. It also stated that the company has set up an intricate network in India. (with inputs from ANI)