A man wanted in a murder case and on the run for more than a year was arrested by the Hyderabad Commissioner’s Task Force after hiding his identity by posing as a ‘Peer Baba’ and working at a dargah in Telangana. The accused, identified as 33-year-old Mohd. Shaik Javed was arrested on Tuesday, 14th July. Police said he had been absconding since 5th June last year and was wanted in connection with a 2018 murder case registered at the Saifabad police station.
Javed, who is also a rowdy sheeter at the Lake police station, had failed to appear before the court in the case, following which a Non-Bailable Warrant (NBW) was issued against him. The case is currently under trial.
Accused took shelter at the dargah
According to investigators, Javed left Hyderabad in January 2026 and moved to Sangareddy district to avoid arrest. He initially stayed at his grandparents’ house near Cheriyal Road before changing his appearance and adopting the identity of a religious figure.
Police said he started working as a priest at the Jindesha Madar Dargah near Kandi and presented himself as a ‘Peer Baba’ in an attempt to hide from authorities. During questioning, Javed reportedly admitted that he had adopted the disguise to avoid being caught by police and to escape the pending court warrant.
Police sources said he posed as an Islamic religious leader to “conceal his identity, mislead police and evade action against him.”
Arrest made after tip-off
Acting on specific intelligence, officials from the Khairtabad Zone Task Force, along with Saifabad police, tracked Javed’s movements and located him in Hyderabad.
During the operation, officers searched the accused and recovered 115 grams of dry ganja from his possession. Police also seized the ‘Peer Baba’ clothes that he had been using to maintain his disguise.
Following his arrest, Javed was produced before a local court on Tuesday, 14th July. The court later remanded him to judicial custody, bringing an end to his efforts to evade arrest for more than a year.
