PNB fraud case: Fugitive Nirav Modi's assets worth ₹29.75 crore attached by ED

PNB fraud case: The attached assets include immovable properties and bank balances in India, which were identified as proceeds of the crime.

Updated on: Sep 11, 2024, 18:23:30 IST

By HT News Desk

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The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has provisionally attached assets worth ₹29.75 crore belonging to fugitive businessman Nirav Modi, as part of its ongoing investigation into the ₹6,498 crore Punjab National Bank (PNB) fraud case, officials said on Wednesday.

Nirav Modi, the mastermind behind the PNB scam, has been fighting extradition from the UK, where authorities arrested him in 2019. (Aniruddha Chowdhury/Mint)

The attached assets include immovable properties and bank balances in India, which were identified as proceeds of the crime, the ED said in a statement.

The Mumbai Zonal Office initiated the attachment under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002.

The investigation stems from a First Information Report (FIR) filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in connection with one of the largest banking frauds in India, allegedly orchestrated by Nirav Modi and his group of companies.

Also Read | Vijay Mallya, Nirav Modi, Mehul Choksi escaped due to delay in arrests: Mumbai Court

Modi and his uncle, Mehul Choksi, are accused of defrauding PNB by obtaining fraudulent Letters of Undertaking (LoUs), enabling them to secure overseas loans without proper collateral.

The scam, uncovered in 2018, involved officials from PNB’s Brady House branch in Mumbai issuing unauthorised LoUs to Modi’s firms, allowing them to receive credit from foreign banks. The total loss to PNB was estimated at ₹6,498 crore. The fraudulent transactions went unnoticed for several years due to the alleged collusion of certain bank officials.

Also Read | London court allows sale of Nirav Modi’s property

So far, the ED has attached movable and immovable assets valued at ₹2,596 crore linked to Nirav Modi and his associates, both in India and abroad. Additionally, assets worth ₹692.90 crore have been confiscated under the Fugitive Economic Offenders Act (FEOA), 2018, following an order from the Special Court (FEOA) in Mumbai.

“Also, assets to the tune of Rs. 1052.42 Crore have been successfully restored to the victim banks i.e. PNB and consortium banks and such assets were physically handed over,” the federal agency said.

The ED has also filed prosecution complaints, including a supplementary prosecution complaint, against Nirav Modi and his associates under the PMLA in a special court.

Modi, the mastermind behind the PNB scam, has been fighting extradition from the UK, where authorities arrested him in 2019. Despite multiple legal challenges, he remains in custody, with extradition proceedings ongoing.

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