Nirav Modi Denied Bail For The Third Time

Brief of the case

• Nirav Modi, a diamond dealer, will stay in Wandsworth prison in London after the Chief Magistrate at Westminster Magistrates Court denied him bail for the third time.
• On Wednesday, a UK court denied Nirav Modi bail for the third time in his extradition case to India, where he faces charges in the USD 2 billion Punjab National Bank fraud and money laundering case.
• His bail, which had already been rejected twice by Westminster Magistrates' Court in London, was up for a third time before Chief Magistrate Emma Arbuthnot.
• She ruled that although the doubling of security offered by Modi's lawyers did amount to a change of circumstances for her to hear the "renewed" bail plea, she still had similar concerns about him failing to surrender as before.
• "This is a massive fraud, and doubling the security to 2 million pounds is insufficient to cover a combination of fears that he will not surrender (if bail is granted)," Judge Arbuthnot said.

Details of the case

• Modi (48), who has been held at Wandsworth Prison in southwest London since his arrest in March 2019 was led up to the dock and sat with two female prison officers behind a glass-panelled enclosure.
• To convince the Judge to grant bail on a strict 24-hour curfew at his posh Centre point apartment in London's West End, his barrister Clare Montgomery said, "His detention experience has been vivid and damaging. Since Wandsworth is unlivable and makes successful planning of his case nearly impossible, he is unable to abide by any bail conditions imposed by the court.”
• The Judge was particularly worried about Modi's lack of community links in the UK, even though he had only been in London for a limited period since 2017.
• Although his lawyers tried to persuade her otherwise by claiming that two of his older children were back in the UK for summer internships, the Judge questioned the degree to which adult children would bind someone to a place.
• "Given the seriousness of the crime of substantial fraud and the fact that he has USD 60 million stashed away, the interference of witnesses, loss of servers and cell phones, combined with a lack of community connections, I continue to have doubts that he would refuse to surrender," the Judge said.
• The court heard how Modi's US-based brother, Nehal, interacted with former employees of Modi's companies and arranged for their flights to Cairo, Egypt, as well as being responsible for the destruction of "evidence" in the form of servers and mobile phones.
• "There is strong evidence that witnesses were manipulated, they (i.e. former employees) were told what to say. And nothing is stopping Modi from making a deliberate effort to flee the country ", Nick Hearn, a barrister for the Crown Prosecution Service, said.
• "Given the seriousness of the crime of substantial fraud and the fact that he has USD 60 million stashed away, the interference of witnesses, loss of servers and cell phones, combined with a lack of community connections, I continue to have doubts that he would refuse to surrender," the Judge said.
• It was also mentioned that USD 60 million in one of Modi's accounts, implying that there is a significant amount of untraced fraudulent funds, that Modi will have more control over in a less safe environment outside the jail.

Observations in the Case

• She also mentioned the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) failing to corroborate a previous allegation that Modi visited New York in February 2019, and reiterated her previous assertion that her client views the UK as a "heaven" and has opted not to flee to any other country with which India does not have an extradition treaty.
• Modi's legal team, headed by solicitor Anand Doobay, had previously offered £1 million in protection in exchange for strict electronic tag limits on their client's movements, similar to house arrest, which they bolstered on Wednesday by doubling the amount and providing a 24-hour electronic tag curfew.
• On March 19, he was apprehended by Scotland Yard officers in central London. Modi was the "principal beneficiary" of the fraudulent issuance of letters of undertaking as part of a scheme to defraud PNB and then launder the proceeds of crime, according to subsequent hearings.

Timeline of the case

• 29th January 2018: The Punjab National Bank (PNB) has filed a police complaint alleging Rs 2.81 billion in fraud against Nirav Modi, Mehul Choksi, and others.
• 5th February 2018: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) begins an investigation into the suspected scam
• 16 February 2018: Modi's home and offices have been raided by the Enforcement Directorate (ED), which has seized a total of Rs 56.74 billion in diamonds, gold, and jewellery.
• 17th February 2018: The CBI makes the first arrest in the case. Two PNB workers and a Modi company executive have been arrested. In connection with the PNB scam, the government has suspended Modi and Mehul Choksi's passports for four weeks.
• 21st February 2018: Modi's CFO and two other senior executives are arrested by the CBI o. It also seals his Alibaug farmhouse.
• 22nd February 2018: The ED seizes nine luxury cars belonging to Modi and his companies.
• 27th February 2018: A magistrate's court issues a bailable arrest warrant for diamond dealer Modi.
• 2nd June 2018: Interpol issues a Red Corner Notice against Modi for money laundering.
• 25th June 2018: The ED filed an extradition request with a special court in Mumbai.
• 3rd August 2018: The Indian government sends a plea to the UK authorities for Modi's extradition.
• 20th August 2018: After Modi informs Indian authorities about his presence in London, CBI officials request that Interpol Manchester detain him.
• 9th March 2019: The British newspaper 'The Telegraph' confronts Modi on the streets of London, confirming his presence in the world. The ED reports that the UK government has sent an extradition request for fugitive diamantaire Modi to a UK court for further consideration.
• 18th March 2019: After the UK Home Office forwarded the Indian government's appeal to the court, the Westminister Court in London issues an arrest warrant.
• 20th March 2019: Nirav Modi was arrested in London and was brought before Westminister Court, where he was denied bail. Modi was sentenced to Her Majesty's Prison (HMP) Wandsworth, where he will remain until March 29.
• 29th March 2019: Modi's second bail plea is denied by a Westminster Magistrates Court in London, citing "substantial reasons" to suspect he did not surrender. The Judge has set the next hearing date for April 26th, when he will appear via a video connection from prison.
• 26th April 2019: Modi is remanded in custody until May 24 by the UK court.
• 1st May 2019: Modi decides to file a third bail plea on May 8, 2019.
• 8th May 2019: Modi's third bail application is denied by a Westminster Magistrates Court, with the Judge stating that the wanted diamond dealer will refuse to surrender.