The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has conducted a major search operation in connection with the alleged SAGA Group Ponzi scam, seizing incriminating documents and freezing assets worth more than ₹30 crore (listed shares and securities, mutual funds, LIC policies, bank balances and nine high-end vehicles).
According to the ED, searches were conducted from 13 August to 16 August 2026 at different residential and business locations in Mumbai and Bhopal in the name of Sameer Agarwal and some of his co-workers. The searches are part of the agency’s ongoing money laundering investigation into the activities of the Loni Urban Multi-State Credit and Thrift Co-operative Society (LUCC) and other affiliated cooperative societies.
The latest action adds to the mounting scrutiny surrounding the SAGA Group network. Sameer Agarwal has been identified as the main target in the broader investigation. In May 2026, the Supreme Court refused to jointly club several FIRs against Agarwal, who is accused of cheating thousands of depositors in several states. Reports have alleged that maturity amounts over thousands of crores have been misappropriated.
Cash, Foreign Currency and Precious Metals Seized
The ED also reported that its new searches have resulted in the seizure of large amounts of cash and valuables.
The investigators seized ₹1.53 crore in cash and foreign currency of around ₹35 lakh. Gold jewellery and silver bullion with a combined value of ₹5.25 crore were also recovered during the searches.
The agency has also frozen financial assets and other properties that it believes represent or are connected to suspected proceeds of crime.
This shows the ED’s emphasis on tracing and retrieving assets generated through the suspected financial network. The Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) and other laws have also been passed to protect suspected proceeds of crime from being concealed, transferred or dissipated as part of an investigation.
SAGA Group and LUCC Investigation
The investigation is into LUCC and other cooperative societies with the SAGA Group. In previous reports on the case, investigators have alleged that the network collected money from millions of depositors through investment and deposit schemes before allegedly diverting or misappropriating funds.
A previous ED investigation in July 2026 led to the arrest of Ravi Shankar Tiwari, a key official of the SAGA Group. The agency said 30.51 lakh investors had deposited around ₹10,314 crore with LUCC and others.
The Central Bureau of Investigation has also been investigating the LUCC cooperative fraud case. In May 2026, the CBI alleged that Sameer Agrawal and his wife Saniya Agrawal had absconded abroad.
ED Traces Financial Trail
The latest searches seem to be aimed at finding the financial trail and assets allegedly connected to the suspected proceeds generated through the cooperative societies.
The assets frozen during the operation include listed securities, mutual fund investments, LIC policies and bank balances, and nine high-end vehicles. The seizure of documents will also help investigators examine transactions, financial arrangements and the role of various associates connected with the alleged network.
The ED’s action is important because financial investigations of Ponzi schemes usually involve tracing money through multiple accounts, investments, properties and other assets. Finding and preserving such assets is key in order to recover, and restitution proceedings once they are concluded and the process of criminal charges has been undertaken.
Investigation Continues
The agency will likely examine the documents and digital or financial records seized during the searches to establish the movement of funds and identify additional beneficiaries or assets.
The latest operation comes as several agencies are investigating the SAGA Group and LUCC network. With the ED freezing more than ₹30 crore worth of financial and other assets, and seizing cash, foreign currency, gold and silver, the investigation will likely go on.
The allegations against individuals involved in the case remain under investigation and judicial proceedings. By itself, the seizure or freezing of assets by the ED does not establish guilt.
But the agency's action is another step in one of the country’s leading cooperative-society investment fraud inquiries, in which investigators still hunt for possible proceeds of crime and for the full scope of the alleged financial network.
