Chhota Shakeel (born Mohammed Shakeel Babu Miyan Shaikh; 31 December 1955) is an Indian crime boss and a high-ranking leader of the D-Company, a criminal group based in South Asia. He joined the D-Company in 1988 under the kingpin Dawood Ibrahim, and was reportedly responsible for managing the day-to-day operations of the criminal group. Shakeel became one of the most-wanted men in India after his alleged participation in the 1993 Bombay bombings. He is also wanted by the U.S. government for international drug trafficking.
He has been sanctioned under the Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act in the Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons List by the United States Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control.
Early life
Chhota Shakeel was born in Bombay, Maharashtra, India, on 31 December 1955. Some sources indicate the year was 1960. His birth name was Mohammed Shakeel Babu Miyan Shaikh. According to his Interpol criminal profile, Shakeel is tall, has black hair and eyes, and speaks Hindi, English, and Urdu.
In the D-Company, Shakeel was known as the CEO, and reported directly to Dawood. According to the Maharashtra police, he reportedly received support from the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), Pakistan's intelligence agency, in his criminal operations. Authorities believe that even if Shakeel was in fact dead, his voice impersonator Merchant would likely continue mimicking his voice to continue running criminal activities.
In mid-2016, D-company lieutenant and Dawood's brother Anees Ibrahim had a fallout with Shakeel over the D-Company's operations in Dubai. Anees wanted to oust Shakeel of his leadership role. Shakeel organized a faction within the D-Company to counter Anees' efforts. Dawood refused to take sides as he wanted to maintain his friendship with Shakeel and ties with his sibling Anees. Other high-ranking leaders of the D-Company were confused about whose orders to follow, and this infighting created tensions within the criminal group. In the clip, a man known as Bilal was heard telling a relative of Shakeel that Shakeel had died of a heart attack and that Dawood's brother Anees was taking his earnings. The Royal Thai Police had reportedly sent a letter to Interpol saying that Shakeel was dead and was no longer subject to the Interpol's Red Notice.