The Man Behind Kashmir’s ₹2,000 Crore Meteorite Mystery

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The stone lay beneath a piece of cloth inside a Gujjar hut in Larnoo, in south Kashmir. Around it, a group of men spoke of a fortune buried beneath its surface.

They called it a meteorite, a rare scientific discovery that could unlock a project worth ₹2,000 crore.

A retired government official had come to see it. He was told that an investment of ₹20 lakh could earn him ₹2 crore.

But there was one catch.

He could look at the stone, but nobody was allowed to remove the cloth covering it. The radiation, the men claimed, was too dangerous.

The deal seemed almost too good to be true. A man who had just hung up his government boots and put his life savings on the line was being promised a fortune. But he was expected to invest without knowing what lay beneath the cloth.

The mastermind behind the deal had allegedly built a collection of identities that helped him approach people, gain their trust and persuade them to part with their savings.

At Larnoo, shortly after the government official handed over his money, panic broke out. Men scattered in different directions. Before he could make sense of what was happening, the retired government official was told that the area had been sealed.

When the retired official returned the following day to recover his investment, the men had an explanation ready. The police, they told him, had seized both the meteorite and the money.

The stone had disappeared overnight, so had the retired official’s life savings.

J&K Police say the man behind the elaborate deception was Raoof Ahmad Wani, a resident of Khudhamam in Dooru, Anantnag district. He called himself Dr. Fahim. At other times, he went by Raoof Kasab.

Investigators say Wani used routine security procedures to pull off the fraud. He allegedly sent fake alerts about suspicious movements, prompting an official response in the area. 

As the gathering scattered at Larnoo, he used the confusion to claim that the stone and the cash had been seized by the authorities.

His latest detention under the Jammu and Kashmir Public Safety Act, announced by Anantnag Police on November 9, has reopened questions about an alleged fraud network that sleuths believe operated for years and reached well beyond south Kashmir.

Wani’s greatest asset, investigators say, was his ability to become whoever his potential victim wanted him to be.

“That made him a man of many masks, someone who could easily sell ice to Eskimos,” said an investigating officer involved in the case. “In corporate language, he was good at R&D. He knew his targets, understood them well, and sold them deception disguised as investment.”

According to police officials, Wani’s conman character come of age soon after his militant stint in 2005.

After his release from prison, he started claiming links with intelligence agencies and security forces. He used these claims to impress people, intimidate potential targets and make himself appear untouchable. 

“He built his influence on these false connections, convincing people that he had powerful backing,” a police official involved in the investigation said. 

By 2012, he had taken the act a step further. 

“He began presenting himself as a doctor and meteorite expert, claiming to be associated with a Japanese research centre,” the investigator said. “The credentials lent an air of scientific legitimacy to his supposed ventures.”

Authorities detained him under the PSA that year. He spent approximately 18 months in prison, investigators say. His release, however, did little to alter the methods that police now associate with his alleged activities.

The retired official who encountered the supposed meteorite had received his retirement benefits from the Rural Development and Panchayati Raj Department. Investigators say Wani’s associates identified him as someone with money and began approaching him through a mosque.

The introductions developed into friendship. The men gained his confidence before bringing him to their supposed scientific expert, Dr. Fahim. 

By the time they took him to Larnoo, the groundwork for the investment pitch had already been laid. The covered stone completed the illusion.

The episode, investigators say, formed part of a wider pattern. 

“Wani’s network allegedly looked for people who had suddenly acquired substantial sums through government payments and compensation schemes,” the investigator said. “The money that was supposed to help families rebuild their lives became a potential target.”

Banihal was among the places where investigators believe the network found victims.

Highway widening had displaced families and affected houses and land, bringing compensation payments to people who had suffered property losses. Police say Wani’s associates kept watch on beneficiaries who received substantial amounts and approached them with investment proposals.

The network allegedly extracted significant sums from members of this community. Investigators are examining the complaints and financial transactions to establish the extent of the losses.

The alleged operation also reveals how little loyalty existed within Wani’s inner circle.

An accomplice from south Kashmir, who investigators say helped him run his operations, was brought into a proposed hospital venture in Duroo. The deal appeared to promise a shared business. But Wani had allegedly registered the hospital property in his wife’s name, leaving his associate with no ownership stake despite believing he was a partner.

The partner-in-crime, who had himself fallen victim to Wani, eventually moved court, which stayed the hospital project.

An investigator described it as a classic case of a thief stealing from another thief, with Wani allegedly cheating even those who had helped him run his con game.

But Wani’s alleged dealings stretched well beyond Kashmir. Investigators say he had contacts in Lucknow, where he posed as a respectable businessman. Police eventually traced him to the city while tracking his wider network. 

His past arrests and detentions reveal an even more troubling history. 

Wani had earlier challenged a 2024 detention order under the Public Safety Act in the Jammu and Kashmir High Court. Despite the legal challenge, Anantnag Police detained him again under the Act on November 9, in what appears to be a fresh attempt to bring his alleged network to an end.

“Under the leadership of SSP Amod Ashok Nagpure, we have taken a tough stand against financial fraud,” a young investigator part of the case said. “Our investigation is now focused on identifying Wani’s associates, tracing the money and establishing who else benefited from the network.” 

The latest detention has also brought fresh complaints to police. People who may have lost money through the alleged operation have begun approaching investigators, giving them new leads to examine.

“We have only seen the tip of the iceberg,” an investigating officer said.

Sleuths are now trying to establish how Wani found his victims, who brought them to him, where the money went and how many people helped run the alleged scam. They believe fresh complaints could provide some of the missing answers.

In Larnoo, a retired government official was asked to invest ₹20 lakh in a fortune he was never allowed to see. Beneath the cloth was a stone presented as a priceless meteorite. Around it, Wani had allegedly built an elaborate story of scientific expertise, intelligence connections and extraordinary wealth.

The police are now trying to uncover the truth behind that story, including the people who helped sell it.

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