Kerala gold smuggling case: NIA requests Interpol to issue blue corner notice against Faisal Fareed
Jul 18, 2020
Thiruvananthapuram (Kerala) [India], July 18 : The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has request Interpol to issue a blue corner notice against Faisal Fareed, an accused in the high-profile Kerala gold smuggling case.
Earlier, a non-bailable warrant was issued against Fareed by a special NIA court in Kochi.
A blue corner notice is an international request for cooperation or alerts for sharing critical crime-related information to help track individuals allegedly involved in criminal activities and suspected to be in other countries.
The NIA had earlier informed the special court that they will hand over the warrant to Interpol as Faisal Fareed is currently suspected of being in Dubai.
According to the agency, Fareed was involved in forging seal and emblem of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) Embassy to commit the crime.
"The documents were forged by Faisal Fareed to ensure diplomatic protection for the baggage. Fareed is the third accused in the case. The gold smuggled into Kerala was not used for jewellery but terror activities. The accused smuggled gold twice in 2019, in two batches of 18 kg and 9 kg," the NIA had submitted before the special court.
Meanwhile, three others accused in the matter -- Sarith PS, Swapna Suresh and Sandeep Nair -- are currently under the custody of the NIA, which is probing the matter.