No, Joyalukkas Founder Has Not Died From COVID-19 In Dubai

WhatsApp messages and social media posts claiming the owner of the Joyalukkas group, has died in the UAE due to COVID-19, are false and misleading.

The viral message has confused the death of another industrialist Joy Arakkal - who recently died in Dubai with Joy Alukkas - the founder of the eponymous business, known in south India for its brand of gold jewellery. A representative of the Joyalukkas group denied that Joy Alukkas had died, when BOOM reached out for a comment.

The posts misidentify Joy Arakkal as the owner of Joyalukkas jewelers, and claim that he died in the Middle East due to COVID-19. The claim is viral on Facebook and WhatsApp.

BOOM received the message on its WhatsApp helpline from several readers asking to verify the message.

Fact Check

BOOM accessed news reports of Joy Arakkal's demise. According to reports in Gulf News, Manorama Online, Deccan Herald and Times of India, Joy Arakkal died on April 23, 2020 in Dubai. 54-year old Arakkal had reportedly died of a heart attack and not after contracting the novel Coronavirus. However, on 29th April, the Dubai Police stated that Arakkal had committed suicide by jumping off a building.

He was known in Kerala's Wayanad region for his palatial house - 'Arakkal Palace' at Mananthavady. He was the managing director of the UAE-based Innova Group. The group focuses on trading and reprocessing a wide range of petroleum and petrochemical products, according to its website. The company has refineries and offices in the UAE, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and India. He is survived by his wife and two children.

Meanwhile, the Joyalukkas group is led by founder Joy Alukkas. The company was established in 1987 and is currently headquartered in Thrissur and Dubai. Its operations include jewellery, money exchange, luxury air charter, fashion, silks and malls.