The Interpol on Tuesday issued a red corner notice against Ami Modi, the wife of fugitive diamond merchant Nirav Modi, NDTV reported. The notice has been issued in connection with money laundering cases against her in India.
A red corner notice is a request to law enforcement worldwide to locate and provisionally arrest a person pending extradition, surrender, or similar legal action. It serves as an international arrest warrant and starts the extradition process.
The notice against Amy Modi was issued based on a request by the Enforcement Directorate, which is investigating the case. Red corner notices have also been issued against Nirav Modi and his siblings – brother Nehal Modi and sister Purvi Modi.
Modi is accused of duping Punjab National Bank of more than Rs 13,000 crore. His uncle Mehul Choksi is also a prime accused in the case. Modi fled to the United Kingdom in 2018. Ami Modi was named in the supplementary complaint filed by the Enforcement Directorate in February. She is accused of money laundering in connection with the purchase of a flat in New York’s Central Park for $30 million.
Ami Modi had left India with her husband and other family members in January 2018 before investigating agencies began their inquiry into the PNB scam, according to Hindustan Times. She is reportedly in the United States.
On August 7, the Westminster Magistrates’ Court in London remanded Nirav Modi in custody till August 27 in India’s second extradition case against him. He was told the next hearing will be a case management hearing ahead of a five-day trial from September 7.
In June, the Enforcement Directorate said it brought back to India the diamonds, pearls and silver jewellery belonging to overseas entities owned by fugitive businessmen Nirav Modi and Mehul Choksi. The jewels are worth Rs 1,350 crore, the investigation agency had said.
The businessman, who fled to the United Kingdom in 2018, was arrested in London earlier this year. Four bail applications have been posted by his legal team since his arrest but they have been rejected every time as he is deemed a flight risk.
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