Subash Kapoor, the most wanted idol thief from India, now languishing in a German jail, is seriously ill as he is suffering from six ailments, according to a communication from Berlin, received by the economic offences wing (EOW), which is trying to get accused extradited.
Kapoor, 63, was involved in a number of idol smuggling from Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Afghanistan and Pakistan.
He has settled in the US for more than three decades, set up an antique shop-cum-gallery in Manhattan at New York.
The Federal Republic of Germany has sent a letter to the Indian foreign affairs ministry, dated May 14, 2012, seeking to know whether there are necessary facilities in India to accommodate Kapoor as he is suffering from six ailments, including asthmatic bronchitis and diabetes.
“We received the letter from the CBI in Delhi which is the Interpol nodal agency. We are preparing a formal reply which will be sent to the Government of Germany through the state home department.
If they accept the letter, then Kapoor will be extradited to India soon,” according to sources in EOW, under which the idol wing comes.
According to the letter sent by the Government of Germany, Kapoor suffers from diabetes mellitus type-2, asthmatic bronchitis, status after prostatectomy due to carcinoma, systemic lupus erythematosus and lactose allergy.
Kapoor was arrested on October 30, 2011, when he landed in Germany to visit an antique handicrafts exhibition, based on an Interpol alert.