ED arrests auditor in Falcon invoice scam worth ₹792 crore

Hyderabad, August 21, 2025

The Directorate of Enforcement (ED), Hyderabad Zonal Office, arrested chartered accountant Sharad Chandra Toshniwal on Wednesday, August 20 in connection with the Capital Protection Force Pvt. Ltd. case involving Amardeep Kumar and others. He was produced before the Special PMLA court the same day and remanded to 14-day judicial custody.

The investigation began following three FIRs registered by the Economic Offence Wing (EOW), Cyberabad, which alleged that Amardeep Kumar, Capital Protection Force Pvt. Ltd. and associates cheated investors by promising high returns. Under the guise of the ‘Falcon invoice discounting scheme’, investors were lured on the pretext of funding invoice discounting, but their money was not repaid. ED found that the company never carried out invoice discounting and instead cheated investors of around ₹792 crore. Amardeep Kumar developed the Falcon invoice app to collect deposits.

“Toshniwal, who was the statutory auditor of Capital Protection Force since its incorporation, was aware of the fraudulent transactions. He managed finances of companies linked to Amardeep Kumar and his family and helped invest the proceeds of crime into Rhett Healthcare Pvt. Ltd., Rhett Herbal Pvt. Ltd., RDP Workstations Pvt. Ltd. and Swastik Ghee Pvt. Ltd. For his role, Toshniwal acquired shares in these companies in the names of relatives and benamis,” said ED in an official release.

The probe revealed that Toshniwal also arranged cash transactions in lieu of transferring proceeds of crime, directly handling ₹14.81 crore in such dealings, thereby playing an active role in concealing the money.

Earlier, the ED had attached properties worth ₹18.14 crore and arrested Sandeep Kumar, brother of the main accused Amardeep Kumar. Further investigation is underway.

[The Hindu]