By Beyza Binnur Donmez
GENEVA (AA) - Mehul Choksi, a fugitive Indian diamond trader at the center of the Punjab National Bank (PNB) fraud case, has been arrested in Belgium, Indian magazine Business Today reported Monday.
Choksi is accused of defrauding PNB of around 135 billion rupees (about $1.6 billion).
He was detained after India’s Central Bureau of Investigation and Enforcement Directorate reactivated extradition requests, despite Interpol having earlier removed a red notice against him.
Mumbai courts had also issued non-bailable warrants in connection with the case.
According to Hindustan Times, he was detained at a hospital in Belgium, where he was reportedly undergoing treatment.
His legal team has long claimed he was unfit to travel due to blood cancer. However, Indian officials argued that his ability to reach Belgium undermined those claims and supported the case for extradition, according to Business Today.
Legal proceedings in Belgium are expected to be lengthy, the report said.
The PNB scam, considered one of India’s biggest banking scandals, involved bank officials fraudulently issuing guarantees that allowed Choksi’s company, Gitanjali Gems, to secure large loans from overseas banks without proper oversight or collateral.
Choksi’s nephew Nirav Modi, also accused of participating in the PNB fraud, continues to fight extradition from the UK.
Choksi acquired citizenship in Antigua and Barbuda under the country’s citizenship-by-investment program in 2017, shortly before the scandal broke, according to the Hindustan Times.