A special NIA court in Mumbai has awarded 10 years’ rigorous imprisonment to two Bangladeshi nationals in connection with the Thane fake currency case.
The court also imposed a fine of Rs 10,000 on the two accused — Abdullah Shaikdar and Najmul Hasan, both residents of Khulna in Bangladesh, under various sections of IPC and section 16 of the UA(P) Act.
“High quality counterfeit currency notes of face value of Rs 4.08 lakh were being circulated in Maharashtra after being procured from Bangladesh in this case. Initially the case was lodged by Thane City Police in 2015 on the basis of specific intelligence shared by the Anti-Narcotic Cell, Crime Branch, Thane City,” said an NIA official.
The NIA investigations have revealed that Shaikdar, with the help of five other accused (all residents of Khulna), was circulating the high quality fake Indian currency notes (FICNs) in different parts of Thane district. Two of his accomplices, including Najmul and one Mohd Sobuj Motur Khan, were arrested.
The police, during personal search of the accused, seized 40 fake notes of the denomination of Rs 1,000. Later they conducted search operations at his house which led to the recovery of another 364 fake notes of the same denomination, while four similar notes were seized from three witnesses in the case.
Later on, the probe was taken over to the NIA. During the investigation, the NIA recorded the statements of witnesses, scrutinised mobile records, and collected other documentary evidences to unearth the full conspiracy.
A charge sheet was filed against the accused, and vigorous pursual of the trial over three years finally resulted in the conviction of the two accused.
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