Saif Ali Khan stabbing: Mumbai Police to conduct 'facial recognition' test on attacker

Mumbai police are set to conduct a digital facial recognition test (FRT) on Shariful Fakir, the prime suspect in the attack on actor Saif Ali Khan at his Bandra residence on January 16. Shariful will be taken to the Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) in Kalina to address doubts about his identity, crucial to the investigation.

Authorities are grappling with the question of whether Shariful is indeed the person captured by CCTV cameras on the 6th floor of the Satguru Sharan building, ascending to Saif’s 11th-floor flat and escaping between 1.30 am and 2.30 am. Forensic experts have also received blood samples, stained clothing, and other evidence collected from the crime scene to aid in the investigation.

“Facial recognition should match the face captured by CCTV footage at Saif's building. Forensic examiners will consider the overall shape and structure of the face during the analysis,” revealed an officer familiar with the case.

Police informed the Bandra court on Friday that Shariful has been uncooperative during the investigation. His phone contained his driving license as well as Bangladeshi national ID cards, raising suspicions of his true origins. “We discovered Shariful had transferred money to his family members in Bangladesh,” added the officer.

The court extended Shariful’s custody by another five days to allow sufficient time for the FRT to be conducted. According to police, this advanced test will play a pivotal role in clarifying the accused's identity.

"The FRT will help us clarify the accused’s identity, as CCTV footage is grainy. The test will compare Shariful's face from different angles and match it with all CCTV footage recovered from various locations, including the places he traveled through," explained the officer.

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