The Crown Prosecution Service of Britain has informed the Central Bureau of Investigation that the accounts of Italian businessman Ottavio Quattrocchi, having nearly Rs 21 crore, have been unlocked.

According to CBI sources, a communication was received from the CPS informing them about the decision of the British High Court to defreeze the accounts. The communication from the CPS follows a request by the CBI Monday to the British Prosecution Service seeking details about the status of the two bank accounts and also conveying to them the order of the Supreme Court asking the agency to maintain status quo on the two accounts.

Just who is Ottavio Quattrocchi

The British authorities had frozen the two accounts -- 5A5151516L and 5A5151516M -- with BSIAG Bank London [Images], having three million Euros and one million dollars respectively -- in July 2003 after the CBI had claimed that the money could be part of kickback allegedly received by Quattrocchi in the Rs 64 crore Bofors payoff case.

However, the CBI communicated to the CPS in December last year that the agency had so far not been able to link the money with the Bofors kickbacks, a move which eventually led to defreezing of the accounts besides creating a political uproar in the country.

Complete coverage: Bofors, the smoking gun