Nurses recruitment rip-off: ED attaches properties value Rs 7.5 crore of Kerala hiring agency

By Express News Service
KOCHI: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Tuesday connected properties of PJ Mathew, proprietor of Mathew International, which was concerned within the recruitment of nurses for positions in Kuwait by charging exorbitant charges.

The ED connected properties value Rs 7.51 crore of Mathew and his family Celine Mathew and Thomas Mathew, officers stated.

The case was first registered by the CBI in 2015 towards personal abroad employment businesses for recruiting nurses to Kuwait charging round Rs 20 lakh from every particular person whereas norms instructed to not cost above Rs 19,000. L Adolphus, Protector of Emigrants, Kochi was accused in a number of instances registered towards varied businesses together with Mathew International. After the CBI filed a chargesheet within the case, the ED registered one other case for cash laundering in 2018.

“It is revealed that PJ Mathew with the help of others recruited more than 900 nurses who were to be employed in Kuwait by charging exorbitant service charge ranging from Rs 18.5 lakhs to Rs 20 lakhs from each of the applicants. The investigation revealed that Mathew International illegally collected Rs 205.71 crores,” an ED official stated.

The connected properties embody a duplex residence in Kadavanthara Kochi, a plot of land in Mumbai, one other two cents of land in Ambalapuzha, Alappuzha, a luxurious automotive and Rs 4.55 crore, which have been seized by the Income Tax Department in a raid held at Mathew International entities in 2015.

The ED had discovered that cash collected from unlawful nursing recruitment was despatched overseas by way of hawala channels via an company named Ideal Forex owned by Mohammad Aslam at Penta Menaka purchasing advanced in Kochi. In a raid carried out in 2018, the ED seized Rs 24.9 lakh value currencies of 19 international locations and Rs 6.4 lakh value Indian forex.