Actor attack case: Crime Branch to question 'Sarath', Mehaboob together

Actor attack case: Police track conspiracy abroad to scuttle probe, to influence witnesses
Puthukkatt Mehaboob P Abdullah and Dileep

Kochi: The Crime Branch team probing the actor attack case has found that the accused had engaged in conspiracy abroad to scuttle the investigation and influence the witnesses in the case.

The Crime Branch is likely to question Dileep's close friend 'Sarath' and Qatar business partner Mehboob P Abdullah together. Mehaboob had earlier clarified that he was not the VIP, Crime Branch was on the lookout for.

Meanwhile, it was reported that Sarath disconnected the Crime Branch team's phone-call when he was contacted by them. The investigation team is yet to reveal more details about him.

The police are likely to collect voice samples of Mehaboob and Sarath to cross-check with the voices in the audio clip which allegedly recorded the conspiracy to harm an investigating officer in the actor assault case.

Dileep visited Qatar twice while on bail

The Crime Branch would also collect the details of the visit of Dileep to Qatar from September 20, 2018 for a week and from February 13, 2019 for another week.

The financial transactions entered into by the industrialist, who is close to Dileep, after the beginning of the trial in the case will also be investigated. Both the times, Dileep visited Qatar after getting relaxation from the bail conditions.

The inquiry team has found that Dileep had met the industrialist in Qatar many times. The police would investigate whether these visits by Dileep had any links with the incident of witnesses in the case turning hostile in the court.

The police have also got information that the "VIP", who was involved in the conspiracy against the police officers who arrested Dileep, also nurtured enmity with the actor.

Film director Balachandrakumar said in his statement that a person of "VIP" stature had visited the house of Dileep just after the actor got bail in the case.

The police's assumption is that the industrialist handed over the pen drive containing the visuals of the assailants intimidating the actor to Dileep at the latter's house on November 15, 2017. If this is found to be true, then the police will have to find out who had given the visuals shot in Pulsar Suni's mobile phone to the NRI businessman.

According to the statement of Pulsar Suni, he had given the visuals to a lawyer in Kochi. The lawyer, in turn, had said that the mobile phone containing visuals was destroyed.

Industrialist from Kottayam, Mehaboob P Abdullah, denies reports

NRI industrialist from Thazhathangadi in Kottayam, Puthukkatt Mehaboob P Abdullah said that he was not the "VIP" doing rounds in the media in connection with the actor attack case.

"I don't know Balachandrakumar. I have only business links with Dileep. I am a partner in Dileep's restaurant chain 'Dhe Puttu''. I went to Dileeep's house three years ago. Two other partners in the same business were with me then. We went there to discuss the opening of a restaurant in Qatar," he said.

"I did not discuss with him anything about the actor attack case. I don't have a close personal relationship with Dileep to discuss such matters. The inquiry officers have not contacted me. I don't know Dileep's brother. I don't know why my name is being dragged into the case. It is understood that my name is unnecessarily being linked to the case by a friend in Delhi. I am ready to cooperate with any kind of investigation, including the lie detector test," he added.

Mehaboob, the owner of the Orchid Residency hotel, has been in Qatar for the last 39 years. The police have not yet confirmed that the VIP who visited Dileep's house was Mehaboob.

According to police, no such assumption can be made before completing the sample checking of the conversation of the persons in the audio tape given by film director Balachandrakumar.

Court to examine plea tomorrow

The Crime Branch has requested the trial court to halt the examination of witnesses and allow further investigation in the case. The court will consider the plea on Tuesday, January 18.

The court will also consider the anticipatory bail plea of Dileep and five other accused in the case registered for conspiring to harm the investigating officers on Tuesday.

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