WARRANT FOR NIRAV EMAILED
The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) has served an arrest warrant via email to absconding diamantaire Nirav Modi in a case of alleged customs duty evasion.
Sources said the warrant was issued by a court in Surat in Gujarat after Nirav Modi failed to appear before it in connection with the case.
The DRI had in March launched prosecution against Nirav Modi and three of his firms — Firestar International Pvt Ltd (FIPL), Firestar Diamond International Pvt Ltd (FDIPL) and Radashir Jewellery Co Pvt Ltd (RJCPL), based in the Special Economic Zone, Surat, for allegedly diverting duty-free imported goods for purposes other than specified in the rules, they said.
According to the norms, duty-free import of goods by the units located in the SEZ is permitted only if they are to be used as raw material and are exported after value addition or processing.
It was found that highvalue diamonds and pearls worth `890 crore, involving customs duty of `52 crore, were allegedly diverted by the SEZ units controlled by Nirav Modi and sold in the open market, sources said. To evade import duty, he allegedly exported low-quality diamonds and pearls and claimed that these were the ones imported and then processed, they said.
London, June 24: Indian billionaire Nirav Modi was living in a flat just above his jewellery store in the posh Mayfair area of London while he was being hunted in India for an alleged money laundering case linked to over USD 2 billion, according to a media report on Sunday.
The 47-year-old diamantaire was able to travel in and out of Britain at least four times since his passport was cancelled by the Indian authorities in February.
During his stay in London, he was reportedly living in the heart of the city above his jewellery boutique called “Nirav Modi” on Old Bond Street, which was reportedly closed last week, The Sunday Times reported.
“Why are they always ending up in London? It's as if the UK is a safe haven,” the newspaper quoted an Indian official as saying.
That Modi has been using Britain as a “safe haven” threatens to damage diplomatic ties between India and the UK and further scupper prospects of a post-Brexit trade deal, the report warned.
Modi and his uncle Mehul Choksi are accused of benefiting from a huge fraud against the Punjab National Bank, the country's second largest lender, to the tune of more than $2 billion.
Indian court has issued warrants for the arrest of Modi and Choksi.
On February 23, the authorities revoked Modi's passport, contacting Interpol and the UK government soon after. But official records reveal Modi travelled to Hong Kong on March 15, and from New York to Heathrow Airport on March 28. —