Dominica high court rejects Mehul Choksi's bail plea, deems him flight risk; key events so far

The Dominica High Court has denied bail to fugitive diamantaire Mehul Choksi in the case of illegal entry into the island country after his mysterious disappearance from neighbouring Antigua and Barbuda where he is staying as a citizen since 2018, local Caribbean media reported. The high court on Friday (local time) gave the ruling by concluding that Choksi was a “flight risk”, did not have any ties with Dominica and the court could not impose any conditions which will stop him from leaving the country, news outlet AntiguaNewsroom said. Choksi had approached the high court after the magistrate had rejected his bail petition. The promoter of Geetanjali Gems and other famous diamond brands in India had fled the country weeks before Rs 13,500 crore fraud in Punjab National Bank (PNB) allegedly involving him and his nephew Nirav Modi surfaced. Choksi, 62, who has an Interpol Red Notice against him, had mysteriously gone missing on 23 May from Antigua and Barbuda where he has been staying since 2018 as a citizen after fleeing from India. He was detained in the neighbouring island country of Dominica for illegal entry after a possible romantic escapade with his rumoured girlfriend. Dominica had deemed Choksi a ‘ prohibited immigrant ’ shortly after his alleged disappearance from Antigua, hours after which he was arrested on He faces another case in Dominica, that of his ‘illegal detention’ in the country. Theories on Choksi’s alleged ‘disappearance’ Choksi was reported “missing" by his family members and lawyer Vijay Aggarwal after he went for dinner in his car in Antigua and Barbuda on Sunday and didn’t return. Later, police in Dominica captured Choksi on Tuesday night (local time) after an Interpol Yellow Notice was issued against him by Antigua and Barbuda. Choksi’s lawyers alleged that he was kidnapped from Jolly Harbour in Antigua by policemen looking like Antiguan and Indian and brought to Dominica on a boat, a theory also backed by the region’s opposition parties who alleged the Antiguan and Dominican government’s  complicity in the fugitive diamantaire’s so-called abduction. His  pictures emerged from Dominica having red swollen eyes and body marks, which further deepened the mystery around his brief disappearance. Another floating theory was that Choksi was honey-trapped by a mysterious woman and brought over to the Dominican island to escape complicated legal loopholes that had been preventing his extradition to India thus far. Yet, there is a theory afloat within certain sections of the media that one of Choksi’s relatives allied with the Antiguan opposition to back his abduction theory to escape Indian law, in return for possible donations to the opposition party’s coffers. However, Indian investigating agencies have indicated that Choksi had escaped to Dominica on a boat probably en route to Cuba after Prime Minister Browne had said Choksi would be extradited to India because he had exhausted his appeals against the deportation, according to  CNBC TV18. Since Cuba has no extradition agreement with India, Choksi’s retrieval from the island nation would have been much more difficult than before. However, given that this is still a developing story, we advise readers to take everything with a pinch of salt. With inputs from PTI