19 samples in total do not match that of the accused. Sources reveal that the facial recognition report generated by Western Railway is also under scrutiny
Actor Saif Ali Khan left the hospital on January 21
In a major setback for Mumbai Police, the State Criminal Investigation Department (CID) has submitted negative reports on the fingerprint samples of Shariful Islam Shehzad, a Bangladeshi national arrested for allegedly attacking Bollywood actor Saif Ali Khan at his residence on January 16 during a failed theft attempt. Shariful was apprehended after a 72-hour manhunt involving nearly 40 teams from the Mumbai Police and the Crime Branch. However, the fingerprints taken from the crime scene—19 samples in total—do not match those of the accused, raising serious questions about whether the wrong person has been arrested.
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Social media is already abuzz with claims pointing out discrepancies between the man seen in the building’s CCTV footage and the arrested suspect, but the police have not addressed these concerns.
CCTV footage that shows the accused escaping. Pic/Satej Shinde
According to sources, prints from all ten of Shariful’s fingers were sent to the CID’s fingerprint bureau. The CID has now confirmed through a system-generated report that none of the 19 crime scene fingerprints match those of the accused. This report was sent to the CID Superintendent in Pune on Friday.
The development not only casts doubt on the investigation but also puts pressure on the Mumbai Police to revisit their findings and address growing public scrutiny. According to sources, Shariful was apprehended from Thane last Sunday by a team from the East Region of Mumbai Police, led by DCP Navnath Dhavale of Zone 6. However, the Zone 6 team reportedly had limited information about the case, as it was primarily being handled by the Zone 9 team. The Zone 06 team was sent to the location as they were closer to the accused as per his location and suspected cell number. After the arrest, the accused was handed over to Bandra Police which is under Zone 09. The next morning Dixit Gedam, Zone 09 DCP, told the media that the arrested man was a Bangladeshi national and was involved in the attack.
The arrested accused, whose fingerprints are reportedly different from those found at the crime scene; (right) The building that houses Saif Ali Khan’s residence. Pic/Satej Shinde
Sources also revealed that the facial recognition report generated by the Western Railway is under scrutiny. The CCTV footage showing the suspect exiting Saif Ali Khan’s building was extremely blurred, and officials could not enhance the image using available technology. As a result, the facial recognition report from the Western Railway, which generated an image of the suspect, was used. However, it is being questioned as it does not match the appearance of the individual seen inside the building.
mid-day reached out to senior officials of the CID and Mumbai Police for comments and clarification regarding the fingerprint report, but no response was received by the time of publication. Meanwhile, the Bandra Police, which produced the accused in court on Friday and secured an extension of his custody, did not disclose details about the fingerprint discrepancies. However, they have indicated the possibility of another suspect being involved in the case.
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