Fake certificate racket busted in Madurai

MADURAI: Madurai Police have busted a fake certificate racket and arrested two Desk-Top-Publishing (DTP) owners on Saturday.The racket came to light during an investigation into a land grab case, according to P Kannappan, Commissioner of Police.Sudandira Marimuthu had pledged his housing site for Rs 10,000 in 1993 with one Subbaiya Chettiyar and had submitted the parent documents of the land to him. As per the agreed interest rate, the money had been settled in 2009 to the lender who instead of returning the documents kept dodging, Kannappan said.On suspicion, the debtor had sought an encumbrance certificate which showed that the land had been sold off to a woman of Kovilpatti. The registration was done with fabricated documents and one Sivakumar and another woman had impersonated and had signed instead of the actual owner executing power of attorney to the lender, who had executed the sale deed, he added. During the course of investigation, two persons, Selvaraj and Charles Alexander, were arrested by the police for supplying forged documents.The duo was running a DTP centre in Madurai and had been supplying fabricated documents for registration of land and other purposes, including bank loans. Their main job was to provide documentary proof by forging documents, including death, birth and legal heir certificates, driving licences, EPIC, PAN card, family card, and even certificates of salary, he said.Computers and several fake seals of Medical, Revenue, Fire and Rescue, Election Department, and other departments were seized from the centre.