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In a major breakthrough of Punjab National Bank loan fraud of Rs 13,000, Belgian police have arrested Mehlchoksi of Abusingdiantar.
The arrests were made on a request for extradition by the Central Bureau of Investigation and Enforcement, news agency PTI reported.
Choksi, who had been running for the past seven years, acquired citizenship in Antigua, the Caribbean, in 2019. He came to Belgium for treatment a few months ago.
Choksi’s lawyer Vijay Agarwal said his client was taken into custody by Belgian police on Saturday.
“At this point, he is in prison (Belgium), and the process is to file an appeal, not apply for bail. During that appeal, there will be a demand that he should not remain in custody, but be allowed to oppose the extradition request while in detention,” Agarwal told reporters.
He said the “obvious” basis for the appeal was that Choksi “is very sick, not a flight risk, he is being treated for cancer.”
scam
Choksi took over the family-owned diamond business and became famous under the Gitanjali Gems brand. Choksi and his ne Nirav Modi, co-accepted in the case, are accused of using promised letters to secure international credit for their diamond business. According to a complaint from the National Bank of Punjab, Lous was issued fraudulently and in violation of Reserve Bank of India guidelines and used to gain the credit of the shell company.
The scam has been ongoing since 2011 and became apparent when PNB executives requested full margin money to issue fresh Lous. After Choksi and Modi companies informed the bank that they would secure Loc without collateral, Red Flag was raised and an investigation was launched.
The case was registered against Choksi in February 2018.
Five more criminal cases were then filed against Choksi and others in 2022 to steal the du of banks and other financial institutions. The ED also has attached assets worth Rs 2,500 as part of its investigation into Choksi.
Modi has been in a UK prison since 2019, ever since his bail application was repeatedly turned down by the court. The Indian government is pushing for his extradition and is raising it at the highest level in the UK government.
Released on April 14, 2025
