‘Proclaimed offender’ on run for 18 years arrested: Crime Branch Kashmir

Srinagar: Crime Branch Kashmir has arrested a “proclaimed offender” from New Delhi, who was evading arrest for the last 18 years in several bank loan fraud cases in Srinagar.

In a statement, a spokesperson said that CBK arrested Sami-ul-Lah Sheikh son of Abdul Rashid Sheikh of Srinagar from New Delhi.“He is wanted in multiple cases of cheating and has been evading arrest for the last 18 years. The modus operandi adopted by the accused in committing financial crimes was that he would fabricate fake and forged revenue documents and hoodwink the banks by availing hefty loans against such documents. He had swindled more than Rs 1 crore from various banks and had been constantly changing his residential locations since the year 2007 to escape the clutches of law,” the statement said.Crime Branch said that a special team of Economic Offences Wing Srinagar, which had been assiduously working on tracing the conman, succeeded in locating and arresting him from his hide-out in the Lajpat Nagar area of New Delhi.Crime Branch said the accused was involved in hatching a criminal conspiracy to fraudulently avail a loan to the tune of Rs 48 lakh from the Indian Overseas Bank (Branch Dalgate) on the basis of fake and forged revenue documents.“The case was charge-sheeted against him (in absentia; u/S 512 CrPC) as well as the other co-accused u/S 420, 468, 471 & 120-B RPC before the court of competent jurisdiction. In case FIR No. 34/2015 he was involved in hatching a criminal conspiracy to fraudulently avail a loan to the tune of Rs 37.80 lakh from J&K Bank (Branch Zainakot) on the basis of fake and forged revenue documents. The case was charge-sheeted against him (in absentia; u/S 512 CrPC) as well as the other co-accused u/S 420, 467, 468, 471 & 120-B RPC before the court of competent jurisdiction,” the statement said.Crime Branch said that during the trial of the case, the court of Principal District and Sessions Judge Srinagar had declared him a “Proclaimed Offender.”It added that the accused is also wanted in case FIR number 05/2019, which pertains to the availing of a loan to the tune of Rs 30 lakh by producing fake and forged documents.