ED raids in Assam, Nagaland and Tamil Nadu over suspected fake human hair export racket

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) carried out coordinated searches across Nagaland, Assam and Tamil Nadu on November 4 as part of an investigation into alleged illegal foreign transactions disguised as human hair exports.

Officials confirmed that the operation was led by the agency’s Dimapur office, marking its first action under the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA). Raids were conducted at two premises each in Dimapur and Guwahati, and three locations in Chennai.

The probe focuses on Lima Imsong and others linked to a firm named Imsong Global Suppliers Co., a sole proprietorship of Imsong. According to the ED, the company received foreign inward remittances claiming to be payments for the export of human hair — a business the agency described as “uncommon and commercially unviable” in Dimapur.

Investigators said the firm failed to provide mandatory export documentation, including shipping bills and invoices, to its authorised bank within the required timeframe. The non-submission of such documents and the failure to realise export proceeds constitute violations of FEMA and Reserve Bank of India (RBI) rules, the agency noted.

The ED also found that funds received in Imsong Global’s account were transferred to Inchem India Pvt. Ltd., as well as to the personal accounts of Imsong and his family members. Inchem India Pvt. Ltd., which is “owned and controlled” by Imsong, had reportedly been dormant before the remittances began and recorded losses during the investigation period, suggesting it was a shell entity.

Further scrutiny revealed that money routed through Inchem India was moved to several “suspicious” firms involved in the human hair trade in Chennai. Officials said the investigation remains ongoing. (With inputs from PTI)