LI Network
Published on: 18 September 2023 at 14:39 IST
A woman has been convicted in the Bengaluru fake currency case, which involved the smuggling of high-quality counterfeit banknotes from Bangladesh into India through Karnataka. Vanitha, also known as ‘Thangam,’ is the sixth accused to be found guilty in this case.
Vanitha (Accused) has been sentenced to six years in prison for violating Section 489B (using counterfeit currency notes as genuine) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), five years for infringing Section 489C (possession of counterfeit currency notes) of the IPC, and two years for engaging in Section 120B (criminal conspiracy) of the IPC. All these sentences will run concurrently, as confirmed by the National Investigation Agency (NIA).
Additionally, the court has imposed a fine of Rs 20,000 on Vanitha.
In 2018, Karnataka Police, in collaboration with the NIA, seized counterfeit currency notes with a total face value of Rs 2.50 lakh from Vanitha. This occurred after the apprehension of three other suspects who possessed counterfeit currency notes worth Rs 4.34 lakh.
The case was initially filed by an NIA officer in 2018, leading to its registration by the Karnataka Police under various sections of the IPC. Subsequently, the NIA took over the case, conducting a comprehensive investigation and surveillance operation.
This operation exposed the counterfeit Indian currency notes (FICN) network, which was masterminded by the primary suspect, Abdul Khadir. Further NIA investigations revealed potential fake note transactions involving three individuals in Bengaluru.
Between 2018 and 2022, the NIA filed charges against eight individuals. Three of them, Mohammed Sajjad Ali alias ‘Chachu,’ M G Raju alias ‘Master,’ and Abdul Kadir, were convicted by the special court and sentenced to six years in prison. Two other suspects, Gangadhar Kholkar and Sabiruddin, were subsequently found guilty and similarly sentenced to six years of imprisonment by the special court, according to the NIA.
