NEW DELHI: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), in coordination with the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) and the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), has successfully secured the deportation of the Red Notice subject Sandeep Mistry from the UAE to India, wanted in the Nirav Modi PNB Bank Fraud case, the release said.
According to the CBI, Sandeep Mistry, is wanted in the Nirav Modi Scam case (PNB fraud case) registered by CBI, BSFB, Mumbai, for his involvement in a bank fraud case involving fictitious international trade transactions.
CBI said, Sandeep Mistry acted as a key link between various entities, overseeing their day-to-day operations and issuing instructions through clandestine, self-deleting communication platforms to conceal evidence, and also facilitated the preparation of forged import-export documents to portray fictitious trade in diamonds, gold and pearl jewellery.
Further, Sandeep Mistry, along with other accused persons, coerced dummy directors of foreign companies by threatening them with arrest, relocating them to other places, seizing their electronic devices and compelling them to sign documents falsely portraying them as genuine owners of the companies.
Sandeep Mistry has also participated in siphoning off funds from the bank accounts of dummy companies in the UAE. The charge-sheet in the case has been filed before the competent court.
At the request of CBI, a Red Notice was published in July 2026 against the subject through INTERPOL channels. Subsequently, the subject was geo-located and arrested by the UAE authorities, and the deportation process was initiated.
Notably, the Red Corner Notice against the subject was published in July 2026, and he was successfully traced, apprehended, and brought back to India within a short span of approximately 2 months of publication of the notice, reflecting swift and effective international coordination among the concerned agencies.
Mistry was taken into custody by the officers of CBI, BSFB, Mumbai, and produced before the competent court and sent to jail custody, the release stated.
The dispute relates to a loan facility extended by Bank of India to Firestar Diamond FZE in 2012, several years before the Punjab National Bank (PNB) fraud case came to light.
Meanwhile, Fugitive diamantaire Nirav Modi, who has been lodged in a London prison since 2019, suffered a major legal setback after the London Circuit Commercial Court ordered him to pay more than USD 10.7 million (over ₹100 crore) to Bank of India in connection with a loan extended to a Dubai-based company promoted by him.
Earlier, on August 3, 2012, Modi executed a personal guarantee in favour of Bank of India. Under the terms of the guarantee, he undertook personal responsibility to repay the loan in the event of a default by the borrowing company.
According to court records, the financial position of the Firestar Group deteriorated significantly after investigations into the alleged banking fraud surfaced in early 2018. In February 2018, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) registered its first FIR in connection with the PNB fraud case. Investigating agencies later alleged that the fraud involved transactions worth nearly USD 2 billion.
According to the bank, no payments were made despite repeated demands.
Modi challenged the recovery proceedings before the London court. His lawyers argued that the personal guarantee was unenforceable and contended that the bank had failed to make a valid demand for payment. They also argued that the bank lacked sufficient grounds to accelerate the loan and seek immediate repayment.
Modi further claimed that he never received notices issued by the bank in April 2018 and October 2025 because he was not present in India at the relevant time.
The court, however, rejected these arguments and held that the notices had been properly served. It noted that the October 2025 demand notice had also been sent to the prison in the United Kingdom where Modi is currently lodged.
The court further observed that Modi’s legal representatives had been provided a copy of the April 2018 notice in 2019, demonstrating that he was aware of the bank’s demand.
In its findings, the court noted that by February 2018, it had become evident that the financial condition of Nirav Modi and the Firestar Group companies had been seriously affected.
The judgment referred to an email sent by Modi to the bank in which he acknowledged that adverse media reports had severely impacted the group’s business operations and that the companies were no longer in a position to meet their outstanding liabilities.
The court concluded that, in these circumstances, Bank of India was fully entitled to demand repayment of the loan, accelerate the facility and enforce the personal guarantee executed by Modi.
The ruling represents another significant setback for Modi in the United Kingdom, where he continues to contest extradition proceedings initiated by India. In March this year, the UK High Court rejected his attempt to reopen his challenge against extradition, relying on assurances provided by the Government of India.
Modi is presently pursuing legal remedies before the European Court of Human Rights in an effort to halt his extradition to India, wanted by the CBI and the Enforcement Directorate in connection with the alleged multi-billion-dollar Punjab National Bank fraud case. (ANI)
