The police will conduct a digital facial recognition test (FRT) on Shariful Fakir, who was arrested for attacking actor Saif Ali Khan at his Bandra residence on January 16. They will take him to the FSL in Kalina to clarify uncertainties about his identity.
Concerns have emerged regarding the connection between the accused and the person captured on CCTV on the 6th floor of Satguru Sharan, who was seen ascending to Saif’s 11th-floor flat and fleeing between 1:30 am and 2:30 am. The police have sent blood samples, stained clothing from both the victim and the accused, as well as other evidence collected from the crime scene to the FSL for analysis.
“Facial recognition should match the face captured by CCTV footage at Saif’s building. Forensic examiners will consider the overall shape and structure of the face during the analysis,” an officer told Times of India (TOI). The officer further said,“We discovered Shariful had transferred money to his family members in Bangladesh.”
On Friday, the police informed the Bandra court about Shariful’s lack of cooperation during the investigation. They also revealed that they found Shariful’s license and Bangladeshi ID cards stored on his phone.
The court extended Shariful’s custody on Friday for another five days at the request of the police, who sought additional time to conduct the FRT. “The FRT will help us clarify the accused’s identity, as CCTV footage is grainy. The test will compare Shariful’s face from different angles and match it with all CCTV footage recovered from various locations, including the places he travelled through.” the cops told TOI.
The magistrate remarked that the case was serious and required a comprehensive investigation to gather evidence, which was essential to determine the accused’s innocence or guilt.