Four New Jersey metal traders are accused of defrauding a number of major commercial banks around the world out of as much as $1 billion.
Mr Narendra Kumar Rastog (47), chief executive of the metal trading companies; Mr Anil Anand (39), chief financial officer; Mr Manoj Nijhawan (43), deputy general manager of Allied Deals; and Mr Udhay Shankar (27), former treasurer of Allied Deals, were arrested in New Jersey, US attorneys said.
US attorneys and the FBI announced the arrest of the four last night. The authorities said the group had conducted the scam since at least May 2000 through trading companies Allied Deals, Hampton Lane and SAI Commodity and London-based RBG Resources, a company run by the brother of one of the four.
According to a complaint at the US attorney's office, the defendants and other co-conspirators stole hundreds of millions of dollars in loan proceeds from banks in the United States, Europe and Asia, including JP Morgan Chase, Fleet National Bank, Dresdner Bank Lateinamerika and China Trust Bank
Government officials described it as a scheme of "astonishing scope and magnitude".
According to the complaint, the four traders represented their companies as brokers to nonferrous metals suppliers and buyers, arranging for shipments and providing financing for purchases involving parties in India, Hong Kong, Singapore and United Arab Emirates.
The complaint said the defendants fabricated collateral and made up business transactions, including having individuals pose as customers, and amassing hundreds of millions of dollars in loans.
If convicted, the defendants face a maximum sentence on the conspiracy count of five years' imprisonment and the greater of a $250,000 fine or twice the gross gain or loss.