London: Jabir Moti, a Pakistani national arrested on money laundering charges, was denied bail on Tuesday by a UK court which also turned down his request to ban the media from the hearing.
During the hearing at Westminster Magistrates' Court here, Judge Coleman denied the bail and asked Moti to reappear on August 28.
Moti's counsel requested the judge to ban the media from the court over safety concerns due to "reports appearing in the Indian media". The judge turned down his request. "We have open justice in this country," the judge said, adding that she may consider allowing Moti to not to have his UK address aired in open court.
Moti, who had been arrested by Scotland Yard's Extradition Unit on Friday on suspicion of conspiracy to commit blackmail, import illegal drugs and money laundering in the US, appeared in the docks wearing jeans and T-shirt.
He was represented in court by his defence attorney Toby Cadman, from the law firm Guernica, who raised some issues with the charges listed in the provisional warrant and those is a "diplomatic note" seeking his extradition to the US.
The court was told that the "criminality is vague" as the warrant and the diplomatic note have some differences and should be deemed invalid.
"This is just a provisional warrant, which allows for 65 days to present the paperwork to back up the charges," the judge said, allowing for the hearing to go ahead.
Moti is reportedly in the UK on a 10-year visa.
His extradition to the US is being sought in relation to an allegation of "conspiracy to commit blackmail, import class A drugs and money laundering", the Met Police said after his arrest from a hotel in the Paddington area on August 17.
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