13/7 PROBE
2005 Visit Under Scanner
Mateen Hafeez TNN
Mumbai: Investigations into the July 13 serial blasts revealed that Haroon Rasheed Naik, who was formally arrested on Wednesday, had gone to Pakistan in 2005 using a Nepalese passport.
Naik (33) had met Indian Mujahideen (IM) leader Yasin Bhatkal alias Shahrukh before leaving for Pakistan for procuring training in handling arms and ammunition.
Naik is the fourth person to be arrested in connection with the serial blasts case.
He was booked for the Opera House bomb blast and produced before the Mazgaon court where he was remanded in police custody till February 10. Naik, a Mumbra resident, has been in custody since August 2011 in a fake currency case. He was arrested soon after he landed in Mumbai from Jeddah. He was allegedly carrying fake Indian currency totalling Rs 80,000. Naik had helped the IM operatives to transfer money from UAE to India, said police sources.
“Naik sent Rs 10 lakh through hawala from Jeddah. The money was received by a Delhi-based operator, Kanwar Nain Pathrija, who handed over the money to Bhatkal,” a police source said. It is learnt that Pathrija had met Bhatkal at a secluded place to hand over Rs 10 lakh, which was later used for the three blasts in Mumbai.
Sources in the security establishment said Naik had been missing from his house for a few years before he was nabbed at the airport. “We have secured Naik’s custody for 10 days. He was responsible for channelizing the money from UAE to India. We sought his custody on the grounds that there could be more persons who helped him execute this deal,” public prosecutor Uddhav V Taralgatte said.
“The police need to check and interrogate these persons. The authorities have to verify whether he had circulated fake currency in India. His detention will definitely help the police to solve some puzzles,” he added. Sources said Naik received instructions from IM members.
The Times of India, February 2, 2012
0 comments:
Post a Comment