144 firms tied to Modi-Choksi under ED lens for laundering

MUMBAI: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) is investigating the transactions of around 144 "suspicious companies" associated with diamond merchant Nirav Modi and his uncle Mehul Choksi to check if they had used these firms to launder money through the foreign direct investment (FDI) method.
In another development, the ED seized hundreds of expensive watches from a warehouse associated with Nirav Modi on Thursday and initiated the process of examining expensive items, including art works, in his four flats in Samudra Mahal building in Worli. The ED also froze a bank account with a balance of Rs 30 crore in Modi's name and shares worth Rs 14 crore in different companies in the course of its probe into the Rs 11,300 crore PNB scam.

The agency is trying to identify Modi's movable and immovable assets across the country, and of his associates, for attachment. So far, the agency has seized jewellery and other valuables claimed to be worth about Rs 6,000 crore.

On Thursday, the ED received specific information from an informant who told them that expensive watches worth crores were lying in a Ghatkopar godown that belonged to Modi.

Officials raided the premises and recovered the watches packed in boxes. An official said they are yet to examine the value of the wristwatches, though, according to initial estimates, they are worth crores of rupees.

ED officials also learnt that Modi had "four flats, and not six", in Samudra Mahal building. Three of these flats had been converted into duplexes which he had purchased from an industrialist in 2006. The fourth flat was purchased from a trust associated with a Congress leader from Madhya Pradesh who owns some more flats in the building.

Officials measured the flat area and stated that the total cost of the four flats could be "around Rs 125 crore". On Wednesday, they had seized nine vehicles belonging to Nirav Modi's family that were parked in the Samudra Mahal parking lot.