Industrialist Pramod Mittal arrested in Bosnia on charges of fraud, money laundering

Industrialist Pramod Mittal, younger brother of steel baron Lakshmi Niwas Mittal, has been arrested in Bosnia over allegations of fraud and money laundering through a company he co-manages, Global Ispat Charcoal Industry Lukavac.

According to a local news portal "zurnal.info ", two more people have been arrested in connection to organised crime of money laundering through Global Ispat Charcoal Industry Lukavac.

The arrested suspects will appear before a judge on Wednesday.

A general manager, Paramesh Bhattacharyya, was among the two arrested officials.

The company website shows that Pramod Mittal has been the Chairman of the Supervisory Board since the commissioning of GIKIL in 2003.

As Mittal and the other two are suspected of being linked to "organised crime" involving abuse of power and economic crimes, they could be jailed for around 45 years, media reports said.

Also, an arrest warrant has been issued for another man who is considered to be associated in the alleged crimes committed by Pramod Mittal and others.

The news portal zurnal.info said that investigators suspect that through this company at least five million KM (mark) (around $2.8 million) have been drawn out of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

In May this year, Lakshmi Niwas Mittal, the CEO of steel major ArcelorMittal, helped his cash-strapped younger brother Pramod to clear the dues he owed to the State Trading Corp of India Ltd, thereby helping avoid legal troubles.