Kollam | A Vigilance Court here has sentenced a former agent to a total of 28 years of rigorous imprisonment and imposed a fine of Rs 2.5 lakh in a fake driving licence case related to the Pathanamthitta RTO.

Kollam Vigilance Court Judge Dr Mohit C S on Wednesday found Muhammed Shafeeq A (47), a native of Adoor in Pathanamthitta, guilty of creating and issuing fake driving licences and documents without following prescribed legal procedures.

He faces a jail term of six years, as sentences under various sections of the Prevention of Corruption Act and the Indian Penal Code run concurrently.

The case pertains to incidents during 2008-09, when the then Pathanamthitta Regional Transport Office (RTO), along with Shafeeq and another agent, allegedly accepted money from applicants seeking new driving licences, addition of Light Motor Vehicle (LMV) and Heavy Passenger Vehicle (HPV) categories, badges and address changes.

The Vigilance registered the case after the Pathanamthitta RTO allegedly issued licences without conducting driving tests or following other mandatory procedures and forged documents to facilitate the process.

The former RTO, who was the first accused, died during the trial, while the third accused, another agent, died during the investigation.

Public Prosecutors Divya P S and Siju Rajan appeared for the Vigilance.

Former Deputy Superintendent of Police M H Latheef of the Thiruvananthapuram Vigilance Special Investigation Unit-I conducted the investigation.