Ahmed, a servant, has been charged with the murder of 6 year old Kiran.

There is circumstantial evidence against Ahmed consisting of a handwritten

ransom note found in the house, his sudden disappearance from the house,

his attempt to flee the city and his presence in the house alone when Kiran

was allegedly kidnapped while playing in garden. On the evening of April

10, 2020 she was apparently taken from her house and she had been missing

until her body was discovered from a shallow grave on June 28th. Since the

alleged kidnapping the focus of the police investigation has been on servants

of the house. Ahmed refused to say anything to the police. During the trial,

the Court called a handwriting expert who is prepared to testify that Ahmed

wrote the note. Ahmed refused to cooperate in providing a handwriting

sample.

The handwriting expert has a criminal record and was convicted of fraud.

Will his record be admissible on cross examination? Are there other ways

to prove the handwriting of a person? What benefit, if any, can the police

make of the fact that Ahmed refused to provide a handwriting sample?

Ahmed was convicted when he was 19 for theft. How can this information

be used? Please discuss with reference to the relevant legal tests and

authorities.