The Bossier banner. [volume] (Bellevue, Bossier Parish, La.) 1859-1952, 1884-03-20
The Career Of a Noted Criminal Of the
East Indies.

To those who believe that the practice
of thuggee has been completely put
down in India the story of Sharfu, or
Sharif-uddin, whose career of crime
has just terminated by his being sem
fenced to transportation for life, will
come as an unpleasant revelation.
Sharfu was the son of butcher in a
small village in the Puniab, and when
yet boy he developed a marked taste
not only for gambling, but even for
card-sharping. AT the age of eighteen,
having quarreled with his father, he left
his native village and attached himself
to a party of horse-dealers. He then
joined the Bareilly police, but was shortly
afterward sentenced to fifteen months
Imprisonment for injuring his wife, the
daughter of Thakur, whom he had alb
Quoted. In the Bareilly jail he came in
contact with Tikka Ram. the head Of a
band of poisoners in the northwest
province. On their recovering their
liberty they resumed operations togeth-
er, making their headquarters in the
town of Agra. After six years work
of undetected crime, of which the de-
tails have not been revealed, the two
fell out, and Sharfu joined the police
force again, only, however, to be dis
missed in a few months. 1t was after
this occurrence that he resumed his
operations as a professional poIsoner on
his own account. His mode of work
ing was simple. Disgusting himself as
a well-to-do native of Dude, he used to
waylay and enter into conversation
with those natives of the province who
happened to be returning with their
savings. his favorite scene of operation
was on the Grand Trunk road. Once he
had struck up the companionship with
| these unsuspecting travellers it was an
easy matter to take food with them,
and Sharfu rarely failed to introduce
the opium or dhatura needed to drug
his victims, whom he speedily relieved
of their savings. Most of these unwary
persons recovered when pursuit was
useless, but many of them died. His
operations between the years 1867 and
1872 were particularly numerous and
successful; and official reports recog-
nized the extent to which thuggee pre-
vailed in Puniab during that period.
| In July, 1881, his secret was revealed
by Tikka Rams wife, with whom he
had been living for fourteen years; and
he had only just sufficient warning to
make a hurried retreat into Rajpootana.
There he renewed his old practices and
placed his services. at the disposal oi
those who had inconvenient relatives to
| get rid of, and who would pay hand
somely for the dangerous work. He
/ long baffied the pursuit of the officials
and it was net until the present year
| that he was discovered, through the in.
strnmentality of Rikka Ram, under.
going a short term of imprisonment in
Agra jail under a different name
Brought up for trial at Loodiana, he
admitted his guilt of ninety-six cases o.
murder or drugging, and was sentenced
to death, which was afterwards modi
fed to transportation for life. Sharfu':
long impunity shows the great diff
Guilty of detecting crime in India, at tht
same time that it reveals the extensive
organization which criminals have
formed, in the Punjab at all events
Much light has recently been thrown
by DIR. Leitner on the argot which
thieves in the Puniab have framed fol
their own use, and of which govern
ment officials are absolutely ignorant. =
London Times.