Nagpur, Nov 5 (IANS): A court in Nagpur on Thursday sentenced three convicts to 3 years’ imprisonment each in a 15-year-old case linked to the illegal sale of leopard skin, a CBI official said. Chief Judicial Magistrate, Nagpur, convicted and sentenced Gulam Mustafa, Ajay and Gopal to three years’ imprisonment, along with a fine of Rs 5,000 each, in the case that was investigated by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). The CBI registered the instant case on the allegation that the accused persons had sold leopard skins illegally to some unknown persons. After completion of the investigation, the CBI filed a chargesheet on December 21, 2001 under penal provisions for criminal conspiracy and under sections 49-B and 51 of the Wild Life (Protection) Act that prohibit dealing in trophies and animal articles and the punishment prescribed for such acts.
In a separate case investigated by the CBI, the probe agency on Thursday arrested an absconding proclaimed offender from Punpun in Bihar in connection with a two-decade-old bank fraud case, an official said. The CBI had registered the bank fraud case immediately against 21 accused, including the accused Raja Bihari, under provisions of the Indian Penal Code and the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988, the official said in a statement. Accused Raja Bihari obtained a loan from Allahabad Bank in Patliputra Colony Branch of Patna in conspiracy with bank officials and middlemen on the basis of forged title deeds, fabricated property documents, and fake guarantor credentials, the CBI said. After investigation, the CBI filed a charge sheet on October 30, 2009, against 21 accused, including accused Raja Bihari. The Special CBI Court took cognisance of the charge sheet on November 12, 2009.
The accused Raja Bihari did not join the investigation and has been absconding since the beginning and has evaded the trial. The accused was subsequently declared a Proclaimed Offender by the Special Court. Acting on intelligence inputs and sustained efforts, a dedicated team of CBI successfully traced and apprehended the Proclaimed Offender Raja Bihari on Thursday from Punpun in Bihar, the statement said.
