Srinagar, Dec 6 (JKNS): In a major development, the Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of Crime Branch Kashmir has chargesheeted chronic habitual offender Zahid Bashir Sofi alias Shagoo in a high-value export scam, exposing yet another instance of his long-running pattern of financial fraud and deliberate evasion of the law.
Spokesperson in a statement issued here to news agency JKNS, The Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of Crime Branch Kashmir has filed a chargesheet in Case FIR No. 31/2023 under Sections 420 and 120-B RPC before the Hon’ble Court of City Judge, Srinagar, against two accused individuals, including habitual offender Zahid Bashir Sofi @ Shagoo, S/o Bashir Ahmad, R/o House No. 2, Andrabi Colony, Narbal. As both accused persons continue to remain absconding, the chargesheet has been presented in absentia under Section 512 CrPC.
Zahid Bashir Shagoo and his wife Shugufta have already been found involved in multiple earlier fraud cases, including Case FIR No. 21/2022 and Case FIR No. 13/2018, both pertaining to alleged fraudulent extraction of money on the pretext of providing gas agencies. Chargesheets in these cases have likewise been filed before the competent courts in absentia under Section 512 CrPC after they evaded arrest, it reads.
The EOW notes that Shagoo’s repeated involvement in high-value fraud cases reflects a persistent pattern of alleged criminal conduct resulting in substantial financial losses to victims. His continued evasion of law enforcement remains a matter of serious concern.
In Case FIR No. 31/2023, the matter originated from a written complaint alleging that Zahid Bashir Sofi @Shagoo deceitfully induced the complainant to invest in a purported export business involving mutton, rice, and other goods destined for Dubai, it reads.
Statement reads that, Shagoo, in alleged collusion with co-accused Javeed Ahmad Shah, is reported to have executed a carefully planned scheme that included taking the complainant to Punjab to sign a forged agreement with “Mahabir Rice Mill”, Mahabir Solvent, Rice Market GT Road Karnal, and subsequently escorting him to Dubai to create false credibility around the alleged venture. On the basis of these misrepresentations, the complainant invested ₹34,74,600, which, as per investigation, was misappropriated.
The probe established the use of forged documents, fabricated agreements, and deliberate inducement, leading to the establishment of offences punishable under Sections 420 and 120-B RPC. Accordingly, the chargesheet has been submitted before the Hon’ble Court of Law for judicial determination, it reads.
If anyone has any information regarding the whereabouts of the accused Chronic Habitual Offender Zahid Bashir Shagoo, they are requested to share it with the investigating agency. The identity of the information provider will be kept confidential, the statement reads. (JKNS)