Kochi: A report has emerged that Mohammed Shafi, the mastermind behind the horrific Elanthoor human sacrifices, is an accused in many cases, including murder.

Two years ago (August 5, 2020), Shafi was apprehended for torturing an elderly woman in Puthencruz here. He posed as a lorry driver and inflicted many wounds on the woman, who was out to buy betel leaves. Three persons, including a woman, were accused in the case then. Shafi was released on bail in the case last year.

Every case related to Shafi, who posed both as a black magic practitioner and an agent at the same time in the Elanthoor case, is shrouded in mystery.

Women lottery ticket vendors were Shafi's persons of interest when it came to human sacrifice. Shafi, who runs a restaurant on Shenoy's Road here, knew quite a few women who were lottery ticket vendors.

There is also information that Shafi was the leader of a drug trafficking gang in Kochi. A Perumbavoor native, Shafi is also known as Rasheed in certain crime circles.

While Shafi used a fake Facebook ID 'Sridevi' to trap Bhagwal Singh, another accused in the human sacrifice case, he introduced himself to the couple as Rasheed when he posed as a black magic practitioner.

He's been residing in Gandhinagar in Ernakulam with his family for a year now. He has four vehicles, including a bus and a jeep. Shafi was feared by locals as well.

The victims Rosly and Padmam were regular visitors to Shafi's restaurant. When Padmam went missing, police approached Shafi. However, they were then looking for a young man named Bilal, who is a friend of Shafi.

According to Bilal, Shafi was arrested for killing a woman in Kalamassery and was even involved in smuggling large quantities of marijuana.

As per reports received by the police, Shafi has had many such shady dealings in and outside the city.