3 Bangladeshi illegals arrested in Mumbai carrying Iraq visas | Raipur News
RAIPUR: The anti-terrorism squads (ATS) of Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra arrested three Bangladeshi nationals from a train at Pydhonie, south Mumbai, on Sunday when they were trying to travel to Baghdad.
The trio had been living illegally in Raipur under fake identities and several counterfeit documents were recovered from them, said police. Also seized were purported Iraq visas. Police are checking if they are genuine.
Police identified the accused as brothers Mohd Ismail, 27, Sheikh Akbar, 23, and Sheikh Sajan, 22. Preliminary investigations suggest that the suspects acquired fake Indian citizenship documents from brokers, who make a fast buck by counterfeiting identification papers for illegal immigrants.
This not only allows them to live in India, but also claim benefit of govt welfare schemes, said an officer. Raipur ATS began keeping a watch on the trio on credible intelligence input that foreign nationals were living quietly in the city using forged identities, said an officer.
The ATS and local police worked in tandem to keep the suspects on surveillance. Police found that they had been living in Tajnagar-Tikrapara area of Raipur for over five years and were using fake Indian identity documents, including passports, Aadhaar cards, and voter IDs.
Upon learning that the trio was trying to travel to Baghdad, using forged documents, including an Indian passport and other govt-issued IDs, an ATS team was sent to intercept them in Mumbai.
Police suspect the three brothers are part of a network that has sent several people to Iraq earlier, who might have links with extremist organizations, such as ISIS. The investigation has now expanded beyond Raipur, with links being traced in cities like Nagpur.
The arrested suspects were booked under BNS sections at Tikrapara police station in Raipur and will be presented in court.
Police have identified at least one agent who helped them obtain the fake IDs, Mohammad Arif, who is part of a racket manufacturing fraudulent documents for people seeking to travel abroad illegally.
