CBI books 2 diamond export firms for cheating bank of Rs. 75 crore

Directors of Jaimin Jewellers Private Limited and Tanaaya Jewellers Private Limited were booked for cheating Indian Overseas Bank and preparing forged documents to present to the bank. The Central Bureau of Investigation's Economic Offences Wing (EOW) has booked the two diamond export firms for allegedly cheating the said nationalised bank of around Rs 75 crores in a diamond export deal.

A few days ago, CBI conducted searches at the five offices and residential premises of the directors of the two firms - Gautam Mehta, Charu Mehta, Jaimin Mehta and Nikhil Merchant - where sources said they had seized important documents connected to the diamond export deal the agency was probing.

"We have also seized Rs 1.32 crore in cash and fixed deposit receipts worth Rs 4.5 crore from the residence of Nikhil Merchant, which he has not been able to substantiate," said the source. "We have informed the Income Tax department about it," the source added.

Jaimin Jewellers and Tanaaya Jewellers had allegedly tied up with Indian Overseas Bank, Nariman Point branch to get a loan of Rs 75 crore for a diamond export order from a Hong Kong-based firm. "We suspect they had fudged the export transactions and did not actually export the goods," said a source from the CBI. "Subsequently, the IOB lodged a complaint to us."