AN ACTOR arrested in the Torres investment fraud case approached a Mumbai court seeking anticipatory bail in another case over a false birth certificate, claiming that he was born in India.
The police had claimed that Armen Ataian was an Ukrainian national, but had allegedly submitted a birth certificate which showed that he was born in Mumbai.
An FIR was filed by the Bhoiwada police based on relevant sections of cheating, forgery against Ataian.
According to police, they had found that the certificate was not authentic after verifying with the the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation.
The police claimed that Ataian had also tried to obtain Indian citizenship on the basis of the certificate.
However, Ataian, in his plea, claimed that his mother, a citizen of the Soviet Union, was a doctor who worked and resided in India from 1972.
He further claimed that his father was an Indian citizen who lived in Lalbaug. Ataian claimed that his parents met in India and he was born in India in 1976 and that his birth certificate was not forged.
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“The applicant states that he is not aware that the birth certificate is forged and fabricated as the applicant has applied for a birth certificate through an agent via the online application process as he was unaware about the procedure to get birth certificate,” the pre-arrest bail plea said.
It added that he had no intention to misuse the certificate or use it for any monetary benefit from the government.
The Mumbai police arrested Ataian as part of its probe in the Torres ponzi scheme, claiming that he was helping other masterminds in the case.
© The Indian Express Pvt Ltd