The managing director of Topaz Investments Ltd., 55-year-old Raju Khemlani, was arrested yesterday by the Fraud Squad and charged with defrauding two Kingston businessmen of $15 million.

The charge stemmed from an alleged agreement to sell a jewellery store at 81b King Street, downtown Kingston.

Khemlani was offered station bail in the sum of $5 million with a surety. He is to appear in the Corporate Area Resident Magistrate's Court on Friday.

It is being alleged that in 1996 Khemlani offered to sell the premises to brothers Mahesh and Haresh Mahpani who are his cousins. They allegedly paid Khemlani $15 million.

Topaz Investments Ltd. operated a jewellery store at 81b King Street at the time of the transaction. In 1997, a loan was obtained from the National Commercial Bank and the property used as security for the loan. The bank sold the property recently for outstanding payments. The bank was sued arising from the sale of the property and the suit is pending in the Supreme Court.

Fraud Squad alerted

The complainants reported the matter to the Fraud Squad this year after they claimed that despite requests for the property to be transferred or the money refunded, Khemlani refused to comply.

Attorney-at-law Bert Samuels, who is representing Khemlani, said yesterday that Khemlani did not do business on his behalf. He said the transaction was between Topaz Investments Ltd. and the complainants, and there were receipts to verify that.

Mr. Samuels said that Khemlani's defence was that there was no agreement for sale drawn up between the parties and a part of the payment was towards a selling price to be agreed, but the price was never agreed. Mr. Samuels said that part of the money was for chattels and rental of the premises.

Mr. Samuels said that in 2001 Topaz Investments Ltd. filed a suit against the complainants to recover outstanding sums for extra profits and rent at the said premises and the suit is pending in the Supreme Court.