LONDON: British police rearrested Indian tycoon Vijay Mallya on Tuesday amid an ongoing extradition request from India, where he is accused of fraud. Mallya left India in March 2016 owing more than $ 1 billion after defaulting on loan payments to state-owned banks and allegedly misusing the funds. The flamboyant financier, who co-owns Formula One team Force India, was expected to appear in a London courtroom later on Tuesday to face additional charges.
“He has been arrested,” a spokesman for the Crown Prosecution Service said. “New charges are being added on.”
Mallya was out on bail after being arrested by police in April following an extradition request from India in early February. Indian investigators demanded the 61-year-old be brought home to face fraud charges related to the bank defaults.
Mallya insisted he was innocent and denied fleeing the charges in his homeland, following the legal hearing in London in June. “I deny all allegations that have been made and I will continue to deny them. I have not eluded any court. If it is my lawful duty to be here, I am happy to be here. I have given enough evidence to prove my case,” he said outside court.”
Known for his lavish lifestyle, Mallya made Kingfisher beer a global brand and ran a now-defunct airline with the same name. Mallya stepped down as the director of the Indian Premier League cricket team Royal Challengers Bangalore last year. His financial dealings are being investigated by the federal Central Bureau of Investigation and the Enforcement Directorate, a financial crimes agency.
Mallya was once known as the “King of Good Times” but dropped off India’s most wealthy list in 2014, engulfed by the massive debts of his grounded carrier Kingfisher Airlines. He has been living in a sprawling $ 15 million mansion in southeast England but has denied absconding.
