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ED files charge sheet against Mehul Choksi’s wife in the PNB case
Along with Priti Choksi, ED has again named Choksi, the duo’s three companies – Gitanjali Gems, Gili India and Nakshatra Brand – and Gokulnath Shetty, a former employee at PNB, in the latest charge sheet under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act
New Delhi: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has pressed charges against Priti Choksi, wife of fugitive diamantaire Mehul Choksi, saying that she was the ultimate beneficiary of certain offshore companies used for routing and parking of funds obtained by the couple by cheating Punjab National Bank.
Along with Priti Choksi, the central agency that investigates financial crimes has again named Mehul Choksi, the duo’s three companies – Gitanjali Gems, Gili India and Nakshatra Brand – and Gokulnath Shetty, former employee at the state-owned bank, in the latest charge sheet, the third so far under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act.
The fresh charge sheet was filed in a Mumbai court in March, but was kept under wraps, according to officials who didn’t want to be named. Two earlier charge sheets were filed by ED in June 2018 and April 2020.
The new charges against Priti Choksi will allow investigating agencies to pursue her extradition from Antigua and Barbuda, a Caribbean country where she fled with her husband after acquiring citizenship in 2017, as well as issue an Interpol red corner notice against her.
After Mehul Choksi went missing from Antigua on May 23 last year, only to be found in Dominica the next day, Priti Choksi claimed in an interview to HT that her husband was abducted and tortured by Indian agents. She has been vocal in targeting the Indian government, claiming that her husband cannot return as he will be kept hostage.
Dominica last month dropped illegal entry proceedings against Mehul Choksi based on a report by Antiguan Royal Police, which confirmed the businessman was indeed abducted from the country, HT had reported.
ED has been investigating Priti Choksi’s role for a long time, as she was involved in running some suspected shell companies in Dubai, Hong Kong and other countries, and was aware of her husband’s criminal activities.
Detailing her role, the ED’s third charge sheet, seen by HT, says that Priti Choksi, also known as Priti Pradyotkumar Kothari, was the ultimate beneficial owner of three companies – including Hillingdon Holdings and Charing Cross Holdings in the United Arab Emirates.
Hillingdon was incorporated by Priti Choksi and Dion Lillywhite (an employee of US-based Gitanjali Group company and dummy director in some of the group companies) and the sole shareholder of Goldhawk DMCC (previously named Diminico DMCC).
Hillingdon owns three properties having total area of over 5,100 sq ft in the UNited Arab Emirates worth over ₹22 crore, according to the charge sheet.
“Priti Choksi was fully aware that the companies – Hillingdon Holdings Ltd, Goldhawk DMCC and Asian Diamond Jewellery UAE were beneficially owned and controlled by her husband Mehul Choksi. She helped him in incorporating firms in UAE to acquire properties therein. During investigation, summons was issued to her but she didn’t honour them,” the ED’s charge sheet says.
“She has helped Mehul Choksi in layering of proceeds of crime and was hand in glove with him getting incorporated companies for laundering and siphoning of proceeds of crime,” it adds.
The charge sheet mentions proceeds of crime involving the couple and their three parent companies – Gitanjali, Gili and Nakshatra – to be worth ₹6,097 crore ( ₹3,011 crore for letters of undertaking and ₹3,086 crore for foreign letters of credit).
Referring to imports worth ₹32,266 crore and exports worth a total ₹8,663 crore done by Mehul Choksi’s Gitanjali group companies between 2014 and 2017, ED said companies in Hong Kong and the United Arab Emirates were used for rotation of goods and funds in order to project inflated turnover.
“The goods exported from India were of abysmally low quality, but its value was highly inflated,” the ED said.
An independent valuation of a set of products by ED revealed that goods were declared at ₹3,840 crore, but its actual value was just ₹103 crore.
The siphoned money was routed to dummy companies in Hong Kong and the UAE, directly controlled by Mehul Choksi, and the money was used to acquire properties in various countries, including the US.
ED has listed a property in Manhattan in New York, purchased by Choksi in 2010 from Robert Liubicic for $895,000 (around ₹5.72 crore). This flat was transferred by Choksi to his daughter-in-law Snigdha Taneja.
The ED has listed at least 20 offshore companies controlled by Choksi that were used to routing and park funds.
“The huge economic scam brewing since 2013-14 came to the notice of bank only when it did not issue fresh LOUs in the absence of the requisite documents and sanctions. By this time, open/unpaid LOUs/FLCs (issued by committing fraud) had mounted up to ₹6,097.63 crore,” the charge sheet said. “The modus operandi of issuance of LOUs/FLCs through fraud was done with the criminal intent of illegally enjoying the credit facility without providing proper collateral and with nominal interest payable and rotating the money for their own end use, by circumventing the established banking procedures and checks.”
Choksi’s lawyer Vijay Aggarwal refused to comment on the charge sheet.
