NRI could face 14-yr jail term for money-laundering

H S Rao
London, Feb 19 (PTI) A Non Resident Indian (NRI) could be
jailed for 14 years if found guilty in a multi-million dollar
money-laundering case in Britain's semi-autonomous island of
Jersey, a tax haven.

52-year-old Raj Arjandas Bhojwani has been charged by
Jersey authorities of laundering about USD 44 million of
ill-gotten wealth of a late Nigerian military dictator through
the Bank of India branch on the island.
It is claimed he made the money from the sale of Tata
trucks to the former Nigerian regime headed by the late
military dictator Gen Sani Abacha in 1996-97.
He could face a prison sentence of upto 14 years if
found guilty at the end of his trial in Jersey on Monday.
Bhojwani was arrested in February 2007 while trying to
catch a flight to the US, reportedly for medical treatment.
He is allowed to move about within Jersey after
furnishing a record bail of USD 65 million.
Bhojwani's daughter Jayshree has sought the
intervention of the Indian Government in getting justice for
her father through transfer of the case to an European court.
"The Indian government should seek a transfer of the
case from the Jersey court to an European Court to ensure a
fair trial," she said.
The Jersey court has also heard allegations against
Abacha and the current Nigerian High Commissioner to South
Africa, Colonel Mohammed Buba Marwa, who was military
administrator of Lagos state and close to Abacha. (MORE) PTI
HSR
PRS


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