UK court rejects bail for diamond tycoon sought in India

A court in London has rejected bail for diamond tycoon Nirav Modi, whose jewels once adorned stars from Bollywood to Hollywood.

Judge Emma Arbuthnot decided on Friday that Modi was a flight risk. The 48-year-old was detained more than a year after Indian authorities alleged he was involved in a $1.8 billion bank fraud. Modi is fighting extradition to India.

Indian authorities have sought Modi's arrest since February 2018, when they alleged companies he controlled defrauded the state-owned Punjab National Bank by using fake financial documents to get loans to buy and import jewels. Modi denies the allegations.

The son of a diamond merchant, Modi built an international jewelry empire that stretched from India to New York and Hong Kong before the allegations were levelled.