The Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of the Delhi Police has arrested Angad Pal Singh in connection with a multi-crore scam involving forged documents used to claim trade benefits under India’s Foreign Trade Policy, a senior police officer said on Saturday.

“Singh was arrested on Monday following his deportation from the United States in connection with another fraud case being investigated by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). He was produced before the court and is currently in judicial custody,” said Vikram K Porwal, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Economic Offences Wing).

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The officer further stated that an FIR registered in 2017 (FIR No. 12/2017, PS EOW) was originally based on a complaint filed by ICICI Bank. The bank reported that 467 fake Foreign Inward Remittance Certificates (FIRCs) had been submitted to its Naraina branch by 17 firms — all linked through 18 account holders. These fraudulent FIRCs were used to illegally claim trade incentives from the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT), causing a loss of ₹30.47 crore to the exchequer.

It also emerged that the fake FIRCs were purportedly issued by Corporation Bank’s Bhikaji Cama Place branch. The exporters allegedly used these forged documents to secure Bank Realisation Certificates (BRCs) from ICICI Bank, which were then submitted to DGFT to obtain Duty Credit Scrips — a form of incentive that allows for the import of goods at reduced customs duties.

Under India’s Foreign Trade Policy, exporters are entitled to two major benefits: Duty Drawback (refunded directly by Customs) and Duty Credit Scrips, which are issued by the DGFT only after confirmation of payment from foreign buyers via FIRCs and BRCs. In this case, however, no actual remittances were received, and the documentation was entirely fabricated.

Investigators revealed that Singh, along with his father Surinder Singh and brother Harsahib Singh, operated five export firms: Kumar Trading Company, National Trader, Trident Overseas India, HSC Exim India, and AHC Auto Spares. They allegedly created a network of bogus export firms and falsified foreign remittance records to fraudulently obtain Scrips. These Scrips, which are transferable, were later sold in the open market, generating substantial profits.

Police allege that Singh, who managed the day-to-day operations of the firms, conspired with bank employees to process the fake documents. The family fled the country soon after the initial complaint was filed. His return and arrest mark a major breakthrough in the case, which has seen several arrests since 2017. Three accused have already been charge-sheeted, and investigations are ongoing.

According to the police, Singh is a Delhi native who studied up to Class 12 and later joined his father in the auto parts export business. Utilizing his knowledge of the import-export ecosystem, Singh allegedly roped in friends and relatives to open additional firms, offering high returns in exchange for their participation in the scheme.

The accused is also named in another criminal case under investigation by the EOW.

“The accused created forged FIRCs to claim export benefits fraudulently and caused a loss of ₹30.47 crore to the Government of India. With this arrest, we have made significant progress in the case,” the DCP stated.

Further investigations are underway to determine the involvement of additional individuals, including bank officials, the DCP added.