The US Department of Justice has dropped all criminal charges against Indian billionaire Gautam Adani and his nephew Sagar Adani in an alleged securities and wire fraud case. The development comes even as Adani Enterprises agreed to a separate $275 million settlement with US authorities over alleged sanctions violations linked to Iranian LPG imports…reports Asian Lite News Desk
The US Department of Justice has permanently dropped all criminal charges against Indian industrialist Gautam Adani and his nephew Sagar Adani in an alleged securities and wire fraud case, marking a significant legal victory for the Adani Group.
In a filing before the Eastern District of New York, the Department of Justice requested the dismissal of the indictment against the Adanis and other defendants.
“The Department of Justice has reviewed this case and has decided, in its prosecutorial discretion, not to devote further resources to these criminal charges against individual defendants,” the Justice Department said in its filing.
Following the request, the court ordered that the indictment against Adani and the other defendants “be dismissed with prejudice”, effectively preventing the charges from being refiled in the future.
The case had centred on allegations related to securities and wire fraud. Counsel representing Gautam Adani and Sagar Adani argued in court that there was no credible evidence supporting the alleged bribery scheme linked to the matter.
The legal team also maintained that the US Securities and Exchange Commission lacked the necessary jurisdiction over the two businessmen. According to the defence, the alleged misstatements forming the basis of the case were not actionable under the applicable legal standards.
The Adani Group had consistently denied all allegations connected to the proceedings. The conglomerate previously stated that none of its entities or executives had been charged under the US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.
It also said that Adani Green Energy, the renewable energy company involved in raising funds connected to the matter, was not a party to the proceedings.
The dismissal of the criminal case marks the latest development in a series of regulatory and legal proceedings involving the Adani Group in the United States. With the closure of the criminal case, several investigations involving the conglomerate have now concluded.
The US Securities and Exchange Commission last week settled civil allegations against Adani, although details of the settlement were not immediately outlined in the latest filing.
Separately, Adani Enterprises Limited reached a settlement with the US Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control over alleged sanctions violations linked to imports of liquefied petroleum gas.
Earlier on Monday, OFAC announced that Adani Enterprises had agreed to pay $275 million to settle its potential civil liability over the “apparent violations” of US sanctions on Iran.
According to the OFAC statement, Adani Enterprises purchased shipments of LPG between November 2023 and June 2025 from a Dubai-based trader that claimed to be supplying Omani and Iraqi gas.
US authorities alleged that warning signs should have alerted the company that the LPG may have originated from Iran.
The Treasury Department said that during the period in question, Adani Enterprises caused US financial institutions to process 32 US dollar denominated payments totalling approximately $192.1 million for the shipments.
“From November 2023 to June 2025, AEL purchased shipments of liquified petroleum gas (LPG) from a Dubai-based trader purporting to supply Omani and Iraqi gas. Red flags should have put AEL on notice that the LPG actually originated from Iran. During this time period, AEL caused US financial institutions to process 32 US dollar-denominated payments totalling approximately $192,104,044 for the shipments,” the OFAC statement said.
The settlement with OFAC is civil in nature and separate from the criminal proceedings dismissed by the Department of Justice.
The developments are likely to be closely watched by investors and regulators given the Adani Group’s global business interests across infrastructure, energy, ports and logistics sectors.
