Fugitive businessman Mehul Choksi had travelled to Dominica from Antigua with his girlfriend to spend some 'good time', but was caught by Dominician Police, Antigua and Barbuda Prime Minister Gaston Browne has said.
In an interview, Browne said, "Mehul Choksi made a mistake and the information we are getting is that Choksi travelled with his girlfriend probably to spend some good time, but he was caught in Dominica and now he can be deported back to India."
Choksi has alleged that he was abducted from Jolly Harbour in Antigua and Barbuda by policemen looking like Antiguan and Indian and taken to Dominica and tortured. However, Antigua and Barbuda's police chief has denied the allegations of abduction and torture of Mehul Choksi.
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Choksi and his nephew Nirav Modi are wanted for allegedly siphoning Rs 13,500 crore of public money from the state-run Punjab National Bank (PNB). While Modi is in a London prison after being denied bail repeatedly and is contesting his extradition to India, Choksi took citizenship of Antigua and Barbuda in 2017 using the Citizenship by Investment programme before fleeing India in the first week of January 2018.
Earlier, Browne had confirmed that India has sent a private jet to Dominica along with documents pertaining to the deportation of Choksi. He has also communicated to Dominican government that Choksi should be sent to India and not to Antigua.
The Dominica High Court has stayed the removal of Choksi from its soil and placed a gag order on the developments until the matter is heard in an open court on June 2.
The Indian government is looking for possibilities to deport Choksi directly to India from Dominica.
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