Saif attack: Cops rest case on forensic evidence, submit charge sheet | Mumbai news

MUMBAI: Police are anchoring their case against Mohammad Shariful Islam Shehzad, the Bangladeshi man accused of breaking into actor Saif Ali Khan’s home and attacking him in January, on compelling forensic evidence. The 1,600-page charge sheet, submitted before a magistrate’s court in Bandra on Tuesday, includes DNA matches, positive facial recognition test results, and fingerprint evidence.

In addition, the charge sheet contains eyewitness statements and crucial CCTV footage of Shariful after the alleged attack. It includes details of a T-shirt and a broken knife fragment recovered from locations reportedly identified by Shariful during interrogation.

“The case against Shariful is watertight, considering all the evidence we have against him,” said Dikshit Gedam, deputy commissioner of police (zone 9).

One of the most crucial pieces of evidence, according to the charge sheet, is a DNA match between Saif’s blood and blood found on a T-shirt allegedly worn by Shariful during the attack, and on the handle of the knife allegedly used in the assault.

Saif was attacked after an intruder broke into his apartment in Satguru Sharan building in Bandra West on January 16. The actor was stabbed several times and, as a result, had to undergo surgery.

The charge sheet includes the statements of more than 40 witnesses, including that of police officers who arrested Shariful from Thane on January 19. It contains the statements of eyewitnesses, such as Khan’s staff, the actor himself and his wife, actor Kareena Kapoor.

Statements were also recorded from an acquaintance of Shariful and a former employer, Jitendra Pandey, and his only relative in India—his maternal uncle. Also on record is the statement of a woman, Khukumoni Jahangir Sheikh, from West Bengal, whose mobile phone was allegedly stolen by Shariful and used later, and the autorickshaw driver who drove an injured Saif to Lilavati Hospital.

According to witness statements, Saif’s son Taimur accompanied the actor to hospital as he was afraid for his father and insisted on staying by his side.

Apart from the DNA matches, the other vital forensic evidence includes extensive CCTV footage allegedly of Shariful recovered from multiple locations after the attack. The footage allegedly identifies Shariful fleeing Saif’s building and places him near the actor’s residence. It also traces his movements to Worli and then Thane, where he was eventually arrested three days later.

The charge sheet includes a forensic report on a match for a set of fingerprints lifted from a duct in Saif’s building with those of Shariful. The prints are important because they potentially establish Shariful’s presence at the crime scene.

“Scientific evidence is the most crucial in any case, and in this case, we have all the necessary scientific support. We also have strong technical and physical evidence. All reports have tested positive. We are confident the accused will be convicted,” said a police officer investigating the case.

The physical evidence that makes for a solid case, according to the charge sheet, is the recovery of the bloodstained T-shirt allegedly worn by Shariful during the attack, on the basis of information provided by him during interrogation. Police say another vital piece of evidence is the broken piece of knife along with its handle recovered from the Bandra Talao, based on information allegedly provided by Shariful.

The technical evidence in the charge sheet relates to mobile phone data and cell tower data that helped police trace Shariful after he allegedly fled the crime scene. Finally, the charge sheet includes a positive identification parade report.

Shariful, a 30-year-old Bangladeshi national, is in judicial custody at Arthur Road Jail. The investigation has revealed that Shariful’s motive was theft, and he was unaware that the home he had broken into was that of Saif and Kareena.