PNB Fraud Updates: We Don't Know Where Nirav Modi Is, Says MEA Spokesperson

CBI is carrying out searches in 26 places across India after naming three  companies in fresh police complaint registered in PNB fraud case, news agency PTI reported. 

Breaking News: Passports of Nirav Modi, Mehul Choksi suspended for 4 weeks by government amid bank scam investigation. They both left India in January

Enforcement Directorate Raids Nirav Modi's Mumbai Botique And Office

This morning, officials from ED raided Nirav Modi's showroom and office in Mumbai's Kala Ghoda area. Yesterday, in searches at 17 Nirav Modi properties in multiple cities, the Enforcement Directorate claimed found diamonds, jewellery and gold worth Rs. 5,000 crore. "More assets will be seized, more premises will be raided. Till now, we have found assets only half the fraud money. Our priority right now to recover assets worth at least equivalent to fraud amount," an official told NDTV this morning.

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10 Latest Developments About Nirav Modi And The Rs 11,300 Crore Punjab National Bank Fraud

Amid investigations against celebrity jeweller Nirav Modi in connection with a massive bank scam, the CBI has contacted Interpol. Nirav Modi, who left India days before the CBI started investigating him in connection with the bank scam, is in New York, staying at the JW Marriott Essex House, a luxury hotel not far from his Manhattan showroom, NDTV has learnt. Raids on Nirav Modi will continue until investigators can seize enough wealth to cover the amount involved in the Punjab National Bank (PNB) swindle - Rs 11,300 crore - sources have told NDTV. This morning, teams of officials returned to the celebrity jeweller's showroom and office in Mumbai.

Here are the 10 latest updates about billionaire jewellery designer Nirav Modi and India's biggest banking fraud - the PNB scandal:

1) Yesterday, in searches at 17 Nirav Modi properties in multiple cities, the Enforcement Directorate found diamonds, jewellery and gold worth Rs. 5,100 crore.

2) "More assets will be seized, more premises will be raided. Till now, we have found assets only half the fraud money. Our priority right now to recover assets worth at least equivalent to fraud amount," an official told NDTV this morning.

3) The government has said that Nirav Modi's passport will be cancelled. The billionaire left India on January 1, long before the bank scam exploded.

4) The raids on Nirav Modi, 48, followed PNB's complaint that it had been cheated of around Rs 11,300 crore of taxpayer's money by Nirav Modi, his family members and business partner Mehul Choksi, who are accused of using fake guarantees to get credit from banks overseas.

5) The CBI filed a formal case charging four, Nirav Modi, his wife Ami, brother Nishal and Mehul Choksi on January 31, after PNB complained of fraud worth Rs 280 crore.

6) Earlier this week, India's second biggest government bank told the CBI that the amount was closer to a staggering Rs 11,300 crore.

7) Nirav Modi and the others left India in the first week of January, long before the CBI filed the case. In the first week of February, deeper into the investigations, the investigating agency put out a lookout notice against the four.

8) Nirav Modi's exit has fueled political sparring with opposition parties like the Congress drawing comparisons with Vijay Mallya's flight out of the country in the middle of attempts to recover billions in unpaid loans from him.

9) The jeweller for stars in India and abroad was recently seen in a group photo in Davos with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The Congress accused PM Modi of helping "Chhota Modi" escape the country though he had been aware of a scam since 2016, when a whistleblower wrote to him on Nirav Modi's uncle Mehul Choksi and warned that he would leave the country. The government called the charge "shameful" and declared that "no one will be spared, no matter how big". Nirav Modi's passport will be revoked, said Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad.

10) Last month, the diamond billionaire was raided over charges that he and his associates had swindled Rs.280 crore from PNB. In a new complaint this week, PNB pegged the scam at much more - around $ 1.8 billion or Rs. 11,300 crore. PNB told the stock exchange that its own officials at a single branch in Mumbai had helped Nirav Modi and others get credit without proper guarantees and in violation of rules. Taxpayers' money had been illegally transferred abroad, the bank said.

PNB Fraud: 10 Facts About Nirav Modi At The Centre Of India's Biggest Banking Fraud
Nirav Modi, the name on glossy billboards promising exclusive diamond jewellery, is now at the centre of a colossal banking scandal involving fraud worth Rs 11,300 crore. Punjab National Bank has said that its own officials violated rules and put out illegal guarantee documents to help the celebrity jeweler secure credit from banks abroad.

Actor Priyanka Chopra Seeks Legal Opinion On Exiting Deal With Nirav Modi

Actor and former Miss World Priyanka Chopra, roped in last year as the brand ambassador for Nirav Modi's designer jewellery, hasn't sued the billionaire but is getting legal opinion on how to cancel her deal, the actor's spokesperson said after the 48-year-old emerged as the target of a massive investigation into the Rs 11,300 crore scandal, termed India's biggest banking fraud. "There are speculative reports that Priyanka Chopra has sued Nirav Modi. This is not true. However, she is currently seeking legal opinion with respect to terminating her contract with the brand in light of allegations of financial fraud against Nirav Modi," her spokesperson said in a brief statement.

Ms Chopra, who scored Hollywood success with her hit series Quantico, has been associated with the luxury diamond jewellery brand as its brand ambassador since January 2017. "Priyanka embodies all the symbols of modern India while paving her own path, which also represents the ethos of our brand," the firm that has boutiques across three continents to sell its jewellery for prices varying between 5 lakhs to 50 crores had announced. The banking scandal, however, has led Ms Chopra to consider snapping ties with the brand.


(Photo: Priyanka Chopra was roped in last year as the ambassador for Nirav Modi's jewellery designer brand)

Nirav Modi And The $ 2 Billion Fraud: What We Know So Far
On Valentine's Day, one of India's biggest banks disclosed an almost $2 billion fraud allegedly by one of the country's richest men, who deals in pearls and diamonds." Shares of the lender, Punjab National Bank, plunged on the news, dragging down other lenders when it said the scam may extend to multiple banks. With several questions still unanswered, here's what we know about the case so far.

Nirav Modi LIVE Updates: NDTV Investigates The Whereabouts Of Nirav Modi, Main Accused In India's Biggest Banking Fraud

NDTV's in person questions to his staff at Madison Avenue showroom were not answered but this statement was given, "This matter has no affiliation, legal or otherwise with Firestar International Limited which is the flagship enterprise of Mr. Nirav Modi." NDTV is currently awaiting a promised call from Nirav Modi's US management. In the mean while, NDTV has also reached out to the FBI, US' Department of Justice and is awaiting a response.

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Nirav Modi LIVE Updates: What Happened At Nirav Modi's New York Apartment When News Of The PNB Scam Broke

NDTV's Namrata Brar managed to reach Nirav Modi's upscale suite on the 36th floor of Manhattan's JW Marriott Essex House, overlooking New York's Central Park on Thursday afternoon. Three staff members informed NDTV that Nirav Modi and his wife Ami were out and only their children were home. Another source told NDTV, "the news is only in India, he is safe in America right?". NDTV has also learnt that there was a great deal of activity on Wednesday night, when multiple people gathered in his apartment at the same time that the news of the scam broke in India. Hotel staff claim to have seen the 48-year-old Nirav Modi, who is unusually reticent, at odd hours late into the night. His wife, Ami Modi, has been seen entering and exiting the building frequently during the day. By the time CBI a sent out the lookout notice in the first week of February, a month had passed since Nirav Modi, his uncle and business partner Mehul Choksi, his brother Nishal Modi and his wife Ami Modi had long left the country in early January.

NDTV has learnt that Nirav Modi is staying in a luxe suite at the JW Marriott's Essex House in Manhattan, a short walk away from his luxurious Madison Avenue jewelry retail store. The diamond billionaire is the main accused behind India's biggest banking fraud of $1.8 billion or over Rs. 11,300 crore. He left India on January 1 and was last seen in Davos, Switzerland.

Apart from the CBI, the Enforcement Directorate also moved a separate application with the External Affairs Ministry, seeking urgent and immediate revocation of passports of Nirav Modi and Mehul Choksi.

Nirav Modi, who holds an Indian passport, left India on January 1, while his brother Nishal, a Belgian citizen, left the country on the same day. However, whether they travelled together has to be investigated. Nirav Modi's wife Ami, a US citizen, also left on January 6 and his uncle and business partner Mehul Choksi, the promoter of Gitanjali jewellery chain, left on January 4, the officials said.


(Photo: Billionaire jewellery designer Nirav Modi is being investigated in connection with the Rs. 11,400 crore Punjab National Bank scam)

Nirav Modi's New York Apartment At JW Marriott Essex House, Manhattan

NDTV has traced Nirav Modi to this upscale apartment in Manhattan's JW Marriott Essex House. Mr Modi's apartment overlooks New York's well known Central Park and is minutes away from his fancy showroom in the city.

(Photo: Sources have told NDTV that billionaire jewellery designer Nirav Modi has been living in this upscale New York apartment)

Nirav Modi Latest Updates: Billionaire Jewelley Designer Traced To Upscale New York Apartment

Sources have confirmed to NDTV that Nirav Modi, the main accused in alleged fraudulent transactions of over Rs 11,400 crore through 150 letters of understanding issued by Punjab National Bank, has been discreetly living at New York's JW Marriott Essex House at 160 Central Park South, which includes both a hotel and apartments. The section where Nirav Modi has been living is situated in a premier location overlooking New York's well known Central Park.


(Photo: Nirav Modi has been living discreetly at New York's JW Marriott Essex House. The section where Nirav Modi has been living is situated in a premier location overlooking New York's well known Central Park)

A day after the Central Bureau of Investigation or CBI, India's premier investigation agency sought the revocation of passports of billionaire jewellery designer Nirav Modi and his partner Mehul Choksi in connection with a Rs 11,400 crore bank fraud, NDTV has traced Nirav Modi to an upscale apartment in Midtown Manhattan.