Man files a suit against Nirav Modi for selling him fake diamond rings
Man files a suit against Nirav Modi for selling him fake diamond rings A Canadian man has filed a suit against Nirav Modi for selling him and his girlfriend fake diamond rings worth US$200,000. According to South China Morning Post, Paul Alfonso, met Nirav in 2012 at an event in Beverly Hills Hotel. A few months later they ran into each other at another event in Malibu and again at the Mandarin Oriental in New York the next week. As per South China Morning Post, they did not meet again until this April when Alfonso emailed Nirav with a request, “I’m in the market for an engagement ring. I’m going to propose to my girlfriend and I want something special.” In his email, Alfonso explained that he wanted to design his own ring. “My budget is in the US$100,000 mark. Do you think you can do something for me?” Nirav responded on the same day: “I’m honoured to help you create your dream engagement ring...Paul, I have the perfect diamond for you.” He offered Alfonso a 3.2-carat round brilliant diamond cut, D colour, VVS1–a high-quality grade and colourless stone. “I can give it to you for wholesale at US$120,000. This is such a beautiful diamond…you can’t go wrong with this one.” The jeweller offered him another 2.5-carat oval diamond for US$80,000. Alfonso sent the money for both rings to a Hong Kong account. As the authenticity certificates did not arrive, several emails followed, with Nirav providing more assurances that the certificates were on their way. In August, they were in for a shock as Paul’s fiancé found that the stones were fake. “We broke up literally after one or two days...It was just too much for both of us to handle. It does not make sense to her, because she says, 'You are a pretty smart guy, how did you let someone scam you out of US$200,000 without making sure the transaction was legitimate?'" -PTC News
