Actor-kingpin arrested for circulation of fake currency

Bablu Khurshid Sheikh, 28, an actor and a kingpin of a fake currency racket operating from Malda in West Bengal, was arrested on Sunday.

Bablu Khurshid Sheikh, 28, an actor and a kingpin of a fake currency racket operating from Malda in West Bengal, was arrested on Sunday.

Sheikh, who has acted in two Bengali films, has allegedly been involved in circulating fake currency and human trafficking for the last five years. Police are checking if the money generated from his fake currency business was used for those films.

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Though an Indian national, Sheikh’s ancestors were from Bangladesh. His wife, a Bangladeshi, was earlier arrested while trying to smuggle fake currency. Police are also investigating his role in the trafficking of Bangladeshis through the West Bengal border.

On October 9, the crime branch had arrested three Bangladeshis, including a woman, and seized fake Indian currency worth Rs4.40 crore from them. The woman was carrying her one-year-old daughter with her to deceive the officials in believing that she was an Indian. On October 16, the crime branch had arrested Abdul Sattar Akbar Ali, 22, from Bangalore and seized fake currency worth Rs3.70 lakh. During questioning the accused, Sheikh’s role came to the fore.

Niket Kaushik, additional commissioner of police (crime), said Sheikh has been remanded in police custody till November 8.