The Mumbai Crime Branch has arrested a 60-year-old man in the Versova area for allegedly carrying fake identity documents linked to the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC). The accused, Akhtar Qutubuddin Hussaini Ahmed, also known as Alexander Palmer, was found with several forged documents.

Police said Akhtar had fake passports, Aadhaar cards, PAN cards, and BARC identity cards issued under the name Ali Raza Hussain. Officers also recovered 14 maps and papers said to contain nuclear-related information.

According to police sources, Akhtar had been pretending to be a BARC scientist and used multiple false names.

During the investigation, police also arrested 34-year-old Munazzil Khan, who runs a cyber café in Jharkhand. Khan is accused of helping Akhtar create the forged documents, including fake educational certificates.

The Crime Intelligence Unit (CIU) found that Khan also helped make two fake passports for Akhtar’s brother, Adil Husaini, using the address of an old family home in Jamshedpur that was sold in 1995. Investigators believe both brothers travelled abroad using these fake identities.

Akhtar is currently in judicial custody until November 12. Khan has been remanded in police custody until November 1.

Police are now questioning both men to understand:

  • Why were the fake documents made

  • Whether more people were involved

  • If the recovered documents were part of a bigger operation

Akhtar’s international call records are being checked. Police want to see if he was in contact with people overseas, especially because of the papers found with possible nuclear-related data.

The investigation also showed that Akhtar has been involved in identity fraud for many years. In 2004, he was deported from Dubai after falsely claiming to be a scientist with access to “classified information.”

Despite this, police say he continued to travel to places like Dubai and Tehran using fake passports and assumed identities.

The case is still being investigated to understand the full scale of Akhtar’s activities and whether others are connected.