Mehul Choksi, the diamond businessman wanted in an alleged Punjab National Bank (PNB) loan fraud case, has been arrested in Belgium following an extradition request from the Indian agencies, sources said.

Choksi’s extradition was sought for his alleged involvement defrauding the PNB of over Rs 13,000 crore. He is wanted by Central probe agencies, including the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Directorate of Enforcement (ED).

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Choksi, who has been absconding from the country for several years after the bank fraud case surfaced, was located and apprehended on Saturday by Belgian authorities. It is being said that he had taken refuge in a foreign country on the pretext of medical treatment. The diamond merchant is now expected to seek legal remedies against his extradition.

Choksi has been living abroad with his wife while his nephew, Nirav Modi, a co-accused in the case who is also awaiting extradition from London, United Kingdom. Both of them had reportedly fled the country in the face of a huge scam way back in 2018.

Choksi’s departure from the country days before the scam unfolded added to the suspicion about his involvement in the case.

Earlier, the CBI had approached the Interpol for a red corner notice (RCN) against Choksi in connection with the case.

The ED has accused Choksi and his nephew of allegedly colluding with the employees of the bank to avail of illegal advances against the payments to suppliers of jewels before allegedly diverting the amount to themselves. However, both the accused have denied allegations.

Since his departure from the country, Choksi is reported to have travelled to different countries including Antigua, where he is said to have citizenship.

Meanwhile, speaking to a news agency, his advocate, Vijay Aggarwal, said, “My client Mehul Choksi has been arrested in Belgium and at the moment, he is in custody. We will be starting the process of filing an appeal against this, and then, as a process of appeal, we will be requesting that he be pulled out of prison. The major ground for the plea is his ill health and that he is undergoing cancer,” he added.

It is alleged that the bankers used fake Letters of Undertakings (LoUs) to open accounts for the import of jewels ignoring guidelines as they were unable to share any document with the PNB. The anti-money laundering agency gathered information and evidence related to dummy companies overseas used allegedly by the diamond trader for the transfer of the ill gotten money. It has also seized properties worth hundreds of crores of rupees.

On January 29, 2018, the PNB registered a complaint with the CBI, alleging that fraudulent LoUs were first issued in the name of three diamond firms.