'Mehul Choksi is not my sugar daddy, I was not his girlfriend', says Barbara Jabarica

New Delhi: Barbara Jabarica, the woman accused by fugitive diamantaire Mehul Choksi for his alleged 'abduction' from Antigua and Barbuda, has denied all his claims. 

In an interview with news agency ANI, Jabarica has asserted that she was not Choksi’s girlfriend nor was he her ‘sugar daddy’. 

“I made this clear in a few interviews that I wasn't his (Mehul Choksi’s) girlfriend and he's not my sugar daddy or anything like that. I've my own income and business. I don't need his cash, support, hotel booking, fake jewellery, or anything like that,” the news agency quoted her as saying. 

Earlier, in an interview with WION,  Jabarica had clarified that she is not a Caribbean national and is a European citizen. Denying all charges of Choksi’s alleged abduction, she said, “Around 3'o clock I left and went to the airport. He said he was kidnapped in afternoon. It's a busy time, daytime and busy area and at time, I was going to the airport". She added, "Why would I kidnap him in middle of day, in the busiest time like 4 or 5 pm", and said, "something does not add up."

Choksi in his complaint with the Commissioner of police of Antigua and Barbuda has listed Barbara Jarabica along with others to have been involved in his alleged kidnapping. 

She revealed she knew Choksi as 'Raj' and the two have been in contact since August 2020. She claimed Choksi spoke to her many times and also gifted her a diamond ring, which turned out to be a fake. 

Meanwhile, Dominica High Court has adjourned the bail hearing of Mehul Choksi till June 11, PTI reported. 

What’s the case so far? 

Choksi had mysteriously gone missing on May 23 from Antigua and Barbuda, where he has been staying since 2018 as a citizen.

He was detained in neighbouring island country Dominica for illegal entry. It is alleged that the businessman went to Dominica for a romantic escapade with his rumoured 'girlfriend'.

While Wayne Marsh, Choksi's lawyer in Dominica, have claimed that his client was ‘severely beaten’ and was ‘abducted' and taken to Dominica. 

Mehul Choksi and his nephew Nirav Modi are wanted for allegedly siphoning Rs 13,500 crore of public money from the state-run Punjab National Bank using letters of undertaking.  

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