Mehul Choksi Arrested In Belgium On India’s Extradition Request: Sources
New Delhi:
Fugitive diamond dealer Mehul Choksi, needed in reference to the Punjab Nationwide Financial institution (PNB) mortgage fraud case, has been arrested by the police in Belgium, sources within the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) confirmed this morning. The 65-year-old was reportedly arrested on Saturday and is presently in jail.
The police referred to 2 open-ended arrest warrants issued in opposition to Choksi by a Mumbai court docket whereas inserting him beneath arrest, Financial Instances reported. These had been dated Might 23, 2018, and June 15, 2021.
He’s anticipated to hunt bail and a right away launch, citing sick well being and different causes.
Choksi and his nephew, Nirav Modi, who’s awaiting extradition from London, are needed by the CBI and the Enforcement Directorate (ED) for allegedly defrauding the PNB of Rs 13,850 crore.
They allegedly used letters of endeavor (LoUs) and international letters of credit score (FLCs) by bribing officers of the financial institution’s Brady Home department in Mumbai.
They fled India in January 2018, weeks earlier than the rip-off within the PNB – the nation’s second largest financial institution – surfaced.
Final month, the Belgian international ministry confirmed to NDTV that Mehul Choksi was within the European nation.
In a communication, they mentioned they had been conscious of his presence and “connected nice significance and a spotlight to it”.
The ministry, nevertheless, mentioned they don’t touch upon particular person circumstances. Even so, “the FPS Overseas Affairs continues to intently comply with the developments on this necessary case”.
In accordance with reviews, Choksi has been dwelling in Antwerp together with his spouse, Preeti Choksi, a citizen of Belgium, after acquiring a ‘residency card’ within the nation.
A citizen of Antigua and Barbuda, he reportedly left the island nation for medical remedy. In 2021, he had gone lacking from Antigua however was later discovered on one other Caribbean island nation – Dominica.
In December 2024, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman advised parliament that properties price Rs 22,280 crore had been restored or bought off to pay again the money owed of needed people like Choksi.
