Fugitive wanted in fake currency notes nabbed

The Thiruvananthapuram Crime Branch on Monday arrested a fugitive wanted for his alleged role in numerous counterfeit note rackets.

A team led by Inspector K.R. Biju apprehended Preman of Kottakkakam in Vithura from a hideout near Attingal based on a tip-off. He was involved in 13 counterfeit note cases recorded in various States, including Gujarat and Tamil Nadu, and in districts such as Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam, and Alappuzha in the 1990s and 2000s.

Preman has also been arraigned as the prime accused in a fake note case registered at the Fort police station in the recent past. The investigation in the particular case led the police to trace his whereabouts.

While undergoing jail term for various cases, he obtained bail in 2017 and has gone absconding ever since. He has cases pending in the courts of Thiruvananthapuram, Neyyattinkara, Nedumangad, Attingal, and Alappuzha. The accused has been remanded in judicial custody, the police said.