215 held in two months in fake GST invoice fraud cases

New Delhi, Jan 10 : As many as 215 persons have been arrested in the last two months across the country in a drive against fake GST invoice fraud cases perpetrated through fake entities and fly-by-night operators who fraudulently availed input tax credit (ITC) in multi-layered scams.
Those arrested by the Directorate General of GST Intelligence (DGGI) and the CGST Commissionerates include six Chartered Accountants and one Company Secretary, sources said.
Others arrested include 71 masterminds, 81 proprietors, 36 Directors or Managing Directors, 15 partners, three CEOs, and one each broker and GST practitioner, the sources added.
GST intelligence authorities have also registered around 2,200 cases and unearthed more than 6,600 fake GSTIN entities. Authorities have also seized more than Rs 700 crore from these fraudsters.
The sources said that those arrested included operators of fake entities and end- beneficiaries who connived with these frauds in running the business of fake invoices on commission basis.
Use of data analytics, data-sharing and AI along with BAFTA tool enabled the GST ecosystem and intelligence authorities to identify layer-by-layer activities of these fake entities and pinpoint the fraudsters with precise input.