Fake notes case: NIA searches six places, seizes digital devices

The NIA carried out searches in Mumbai as part of their probe into the circulation of fake Indian currency notes allegedly by Dawood Ibrahim gang members. Most of the houses and offices searched belonged to two persons arrested in a fake notes case. The agency seized weapons, digital devices, and documents. The role of the D-Company has been prima facie established in the circulation of FICN in India, said the NIA.

MUMBAI: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Wednesday carried out searches at six locations in the city, as part of their probe into the circulation of fake Indian currency notes (FICN) allegedly by Dawood Ibrahim gang members.

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Most of the houses and offices that were searched belonged to two persons arrested in a fake notes case registered at Thane’s Naupada police station in 2021, an agency officer said and added that weapons, digital devices, and documents were seized.

“Thus, the role of the D-Company has been prima facie established in the circulation of FICN in India,” the NIA said in a release on Thursday.

On November 17, 2021, the Thane crime branch laid a trap and arrested one Riyaz Abdul Rahiman Shikilkar at Charai and seized 149 fake notes with a face value of ₹2,000 from him. Shikilkar, a resident of Navpada in Bandra East, was booked under section 489C (possession of forged or counterfeit currency notes or bank notes) of the Indian Penal Code.

Shikilkar allegedly told the police that he had purchased the fake notes from one ‘uncle’ for ₹1.80 lakh and they were delivered to him through an agent, a police officer said. He also claimed that he was in touch with the ‘uncle’ through WhatsApp calls and messages, the officer added.

Based on his interrogation, his accomplice Nasir Usmangani Chaudhari, a Bandra West resident, was arrested. The police later filed a chargesheet against the two in Thane sessions court.

The NIA took over the probe pursuant to an order issued by the union ministry of home affairs on February 6, 2023, and registered a fresh case against the duo and also charged them with provisions of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967.

The federal agency found that the WhatsApp number Shikilkar referred to was from Malaysia and the man who communicated with him was suspected to be a Pakistani national, officers said.