One of the key witnesses and accused in the Koda Scam, Mr. Manoj Punamia was arrested by the Police at the Mumbai International airport on Monday Night. Mr. Punamia has earlier given the immigration Officers a slip and had managed to leave the Country in spite of the Airport officials being intimated to stop his departure from the country.

The Police believe that Mr. Punamia had traveled To Dubai where he has many business dealings and transactions highly implicative by nature. The investigators are of the opinion that Mr. Punamia may have chosen to go to Dubai at this particularly crucial time in order to destroy evidence of the business dealings he had made in Dubai. He was arrested on arrival on the charges of traveling outside the country despite being barred from doing so.

The Koda - Scam involves the Jharkhand Chief Minister, Mr. Koda and the other prime accused Mr. Punamia, who are presently being charged with the crime of money laundering. Their clientele consisted mainly of politicians. Mr. Punamia used his company, Balaji Group to help launder the money and buy properties in Dubai. The companies' party to the scam also made legal money transfers to front companies in Dubai. Some of the money transaction were also made through Indian Banks such as the Union Bank of India and attracted the attention of investigators.

The Balaji Group moved around Rs 640 crores through the Union Bank of India between November 2006 and December 2008. The Company used the Zaveri Bazar branch of the Bank to make these transactions. Mr. Punamia also admitted to investigators that he had been involved in negotiations with a Sweden - based Firm which had shoed an interest in investing in India. Mr. Punamia had also paid a law firm to finalize the setting up of a office in Sweden.