Fake signature of judge used for accused’s bail papers

A release order of a cheating accused lodged at Taloja jail turned out to be forged after jail authorities noticed that the signature of the civil judge on it was

A release order of a cheating accused lodged at Taloja jail turned out to be forged after jail authorities noticed that the signature of the civil judge on it was forged. The CBD Belapur police have registered a case against an unknown person.

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The Taloja jail authorities received a release memo from the Judicial Magistrate First Class (JMFC) in Vashi over the cheating case of Mohammed Ubaidul alias Sayyed Mudassar Shaikh. Shaikh was arrested in a cheating case and has been lodged in Taloja jail in judicial custody.

While the court had granted him bail recently, his release was not cleared as he had failed to present sureties before the court.

SJ Katkar, the civil judge at JMFC Vashi, informed assistant superintendent of the court Ramesh Lambe that the Taloja jail had received a release memo from the court on February 11 with her signatures.

The jail staff noticed something amiss with Katkar’s signature and got in touch with the court for clarification which confirmed their suspicions. The release memo also had the court stamp and an outward number issued upon sending out the official orders.

“We have registered a case of cheating and forgery against an unknown person. We will record statements of the court staff privy to the process and also those involved in the previously registered cheating case against Shaikh,” said an officer from CBD Belapur police station.

Police sources said they will also record statements of the lawyers who represented Shaikh in the previous bail hearings.