Perumbavoor: A 32-year-old Bangladeshi native has been arrested for illegally residing in Kerala for the past 18 years and being involved in mobile phone theft and counterfeit currency smuggling. The accused, identified as Salim Mandel, a native of Alipur, Bangladesh, was caught after stealing a mobile phone from a train passenger on March 23. The railway police have registered a case.
According to the police, Salim Mandel is a key member of a smuggling network that exchanges stolen mobile phones for counterfeit Indian currency. It is reported that mobile phones, which can be sold for a maximum of Rs 2,000, were exchanged for up to Rs 40,000 fake currency in Bangladesh. When taken into custody, the accused was found to possess 17 counterfeit notes.
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Investigations revealed that Salim Mandel entered India 18 years ago and resided in West Bengal for three years before moving to Kerala, where he lived for the past 15 years. He managed to obtain an Indian passport and Aadhaar card in West Bengal and fraudulently stamped a Bangladeshi visa on the Indian passport, and travelled to India and Bangladesh with this as proof.
Authorities suspect that the smuggling network he was involved in has been distributing large amounts of counterfeit currency across India. Further information indicates that the paper and ink used for printing fake currency were brought from Bangladesh by the accused. Around 50 stolen mobile phones were reportedly smuggled to Bangladesh.
The accused, who was previously arrested in a rape case, evaded case by giving compensation to the victim from Bihar. Salim’s mother, 52-year-old Regina, has been arrested for residing illegally in Allapra, Perumbavoor.
The arrest was made under the supervision of District Police Commissioner Dr. Vaibhav Saxena along with Perumbavoor Assistant Superintendent of Police (SP) Shakthi Singh Arya, Inspector T.M. Sufi, and Sub-Inspector P.M. Rasik.
