Srinagar, May 14 (IANS) The J&K Police’s Crime Branch has carried out house searches in connection with an FIR registered in a land fraud case, an official statement said on Thursday.

The Crime Branch statement said that the Special Crime Wing Kashmir of the Crime Branch J&K carried out house searches in connection with FIR No. 06/2026 registered under Sections 420, 468, and 120-B RPC in Srinagar and Budgam districts.

The FIR was registered on the basis of a written complaint submitted by a resident of Humhama, Budgam, who alleged that Tariq Ahmad Sofi, resident of Solina, Srinagar, had fraudulently obtained lakhs of rupees from him under the guise of the sale of land situated at Narkara, Srinagar.

The investigation prima facie revealed that the accused, land brokers Sofi, son of Ghulam Ahmad Sofi R/o House No. 53, Tulsi Bagh Srinagar and Tariq Ahmad Wani, son of Mohammad Abdullah Wani, resident of Narkara, Budgam, in connivance with the then Patwari, had prepared and used forged documents and entered into a criminal conspiracy to deceive the complainant and misappropriate money in connection with the land transaction. Consequently, in continuation of the investigation, house searches were carried out at multiple locations in Srinagar and Budgam in the presence of Executive Magistrates to collect incriminating material and other evidence relevant to the case.

The Crime Branch wing of J&K Police carries out dedicated investigations in special crimes and in economic offences that require special expertise and dedicated investigation. The executive police engaged with maintenance of law and order cannot devote full time to such investigations, and that is why such crimes are handled by the Crime Branch.

J&K Crime Branch has two wings, one for the Valley and one for the Jammu division. Both these wings have special teams of sleuths deployed to deal with economic offences exclusively.

–IANS

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