He Was an Afghan Prince. Until He Wasn’t.
KABUL, Afghanistan — He arrived in northern Afghanistan bearing certificates of appreciation from the presidential palace — a favored token of Afghan officials, second only to government medals.
The dignitary was provided security by Afghan commandos and ushered around in one of the gov- ernment’s precious helicopters. Disrity Council, was a serial impostor. trict governors posed with him for And after more than a decade of photographs; generals clicked their tricking officials, and growing rich heels together in respect and then from it, Mr. Zmarai, the son of a extended their hands to receive their wheat seller, had pushed his luck too certificates. far.
The only problem? TheA man, who t the end of his northern tour, Afhad introduced himself as Sardar ghan security agents were waiting Zmarai, a prince and a senior repfor him with handcuffs at the airport resentative from President Ashraf in the city of Mazar-i-Sharif. Ghani’s Office of the National SecuMr. Zmarai, whose latest identity was as a descendant of an Afghan prince who had served as the country’s first president, may be one of the more cunning impostors.
One victim laughed at how badly he had been duped.
“He came to Baghlan from Balkh with a bunch of army commandos, then he called the army corps commander in Balkh to inform him that he had arrived safely to Baghlan,” said General Noor Habib Gulbahari, the police chief of Baghlan Province. “I also talked with the corps commander in Balkh through his phone, and he told me to take care of him.”
Mr. Zmarai, believed to be in his late 20s, hails from Khanabad District in Kunduz Province, according to government officials and relatives.
Relatives, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said Mr. Zmarai began about 14 years ago posing as a government inspector on projects, luring officials and contractors to give him a cut. But early on, he was arrested twice.
In Kunduz, he marketed himself as a middleman to NATO.
“There would be so many cars in front of his office that people wouldn’t get a turn to talk to him,” Salahudin said.
In more recent times, Mr. Zmarai preferred the identity of a prince. He even sold the land of his supposed ancestor, Prince Daoud.
“He took $10,000 from me, and when I followed the issue, the land did not belong to him,” said General Abdul Wahid Taqat, a retired commander.
The final moments before his arrest had to be dramatic, and were — though the accounts, fittingly, differ.
The office of Balkh Province’s governor said Mr. Zmarai had jumped from the third floor of the airport. A second official said Mr. Zmarai was arrested as soon as the government helicopter he used landed in Mazar-i- Sharif. Fearing his arrest when he saw security guards on the grounds, Mr. Zmarai had jumped from the helicopter and hurt his leg, that official said.