NEW DELHI: The Delhi High Court on Tuesday granted bail to British national Christian Michel in the money laundering case linked to the AgustaWestland VVIP chopper scam.
The order clears the way for his release after more than five years in custody.
It was passed by Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma following Michel’s earlier bail granted by the Supreme Court on February 18 in the parallel CBI case related to the scam.
With relief now secured in both cases, he is set to walk out of jail. Michel, who was extradited from the UAE to India in December 2018, has remained in judicial custody since then.
He is accused of facilitating illicit payments amounting to Euro 42.27 million (approximately US dollar 33 million), allegedly received as kickbacks for securing the multi-million-dollar VVIP helicopter deal for AgustaWestland.
Investigators claim that the bribes were funneled through a network of contracts and offshore accounts in the UK and UAE to disguise the transactions.
During the hearing, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) strongly opposed Michel’s bail, contending that his British citizenship made him a potential flight risk.
"Being a foreign national, he has the means to escape," argued ED special counsel Zoheb Hossain.
However, Michel’s lawyer, Advocate Aljo Joseph, countered this claim, pointing out that his passport had expired, making it impossible for him to leave India.
"He does not possess a valid passport anymore, so the question of fleeing does not arise," Joseph stated.
Joseph further argued that since Michel had already spent a duration equivalent to the maximum prescribed sentence as an undertrial, his continued detention was unwarranted.
"Once an undertrial completes the maximum sentence applicable to the alleged offense, his release is inevitable -- whether he stays in the country or not becomes immaterial," he contended.