Odisha Police To Seek 7-Day Custody Of Kashmiri Fraudster With Suspected Terror Links

Bhubaneswar: The Odisha Crime Branch will seek 7-day custody of the arrested 37-year-old Kashmiri fraudster with suspected terror links, STF SP Kishore Kumar Panigrahi told the media on Sunday.

Sayed Ishaan Bukhari, who impersonated as an Army doctor and senior official at the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO), was arrested by STF following a raid at his rented accommodation at Neulpur in Jajpur district on Friday. He also used to fake his identity as an associate of officers of the National Investigation Agency (NIA).

He is currently lodged in Ragadi sub-jail.

The SP said that they are in touch with IB, and their counterparts in Jammu and Kashmir and Punjab. “Once we get his custody, they may visit the state to interrogate him. His terror links are yet to be established. We are waiting for details from J&K police,” he said.

Bukhari told police that he was booked for cheating and forgery in J&K in 2017 and a non-bailable warrant was issued against him, following which he had been hiding in Odisha. Punjab Police have also registered a case against Bukhari’s father under Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act.

Panigrahi further said that Pakistan numbers were found in the mobile phone. “We have written to the service providers for CDR analysis. Information on his financial transactions has also been sought,” he said.

Medical degree certificates of Cornell University in the US, Canadian Health Services Institute and Christian Medical College in Vellore, which were recovered from him, are also being verified, he said.

The accused had married six to seven women by identifying himself as a neurosurgeon in different parts of the country like Odisha, J&K, Uttar Pradesh and Kerala. He also fathered 4-5 children, the SP added.

Hailing from Handwara in J&K’s Kupwara district, Bukhari had been under the scanner of the Crime Branch for some day over his suspicious activities. He had been staying in Jajpur since 2018 after marrying a woman who is reportedly a teacher by profession. He allegedly had links with at least two Pakistani nationals. He was also in contact with suspicious persons in Kerala and the chats between the duo suggested Bukhari agreed to send youths from Kashmir to Kerala.

“We had received information that a man has been living here and his activities were suspicious. Our team conducted the raid with independent witnesses. We received more than 100 forged documents- false documents, and fake medical university certificates. We came to know that he is a big impersonator. He belongs to Kashmir…There is another case registered against him. I think his warrant is also pending. He was in communication with suspicious elements in Kerala & Pakistan…A detailed probe has been launched to ascertain whether Bukhari has links with Pakistan’s ISI or any terror activities,” Inspector general of STF JN Pankaj earlier told mediapersons.

Incriminating materials including more than 100 documents including blank signed documents, affidavits and bonds, several identity and ATM cards, blank cheques, Aadhaar cards and visiting cards were also seized from his rented premises, sources added.