The police team probing the alleged forgery of documents to facilitate organ donation has arrested one more person in the case.

Muhammed Najeeb, 53, of Kalnad, Kasaragod, was arrested by a special investigation team, led by District police chief (Ernakulam rural) K.S. Sudarshan, from Ghaziabad in Uttar Pradesh on Sunday (May 10). He was brought to the Kunnathunad police station later.

Mr. Najeeb’s wife, Rasheeda, was arrested by the Kunnathunad police in connection with the case earlier.

Earlier, Sunny Varghese, 56, of Thadiyan house at Kumarapuram in Kunnathunad, his wife Sini Varghese, 50, and Sanoj, 32, of Kavungaparambu, Chelakkulam, were arrested by the Ernakulam rural police for their alleged involvement in the crime. Three people, Sreeja, Sudheer, and Vinod, were, meanwhile, arrested by the Kilikollur police in Kollam district.

According to the FIRs, the accused forged documents, including letterheads of two major hospitals in Ernakulam, as well as blank letterheads in the name of an MLA and MP, to facilitate organ donations. The police sources said the preliminary investigation suggests the accused were involved in the forgery of documents to avoid legal scrutiny of donors. “It is yet to be known if the arrested were part of any larger network,” an officer involved in the investigation said.