Police mops up LeT network in Rajouri, 4 held with huge recoveries
STATE TIMES NEWS
Jammu: The Jammu and Kashmir Police has busted a Lashker-e-Taiba module operating in Jammu city by arresting three people involved in receiving and ferrying consignments of weapons and explosives dropped by 15 drone sorties in border areas from the Pakistan side, officials said on Monday.
The police seized an AK rifle, pistols, silencers and grenades from a Jammu-based residence of an LeT terrorist, thereby foiling possible terror plots in the city.
Terror hideout busted in Ramban
Banihal/Jammu: Security forces on Monday busted a suspected terror hideout in Ramban district and seized ammunition and explosives, officials said.
A joint search operation by the Rashtriya Rifles and the police was launched in the heights of the Buzla-Khari belt in Banihal which led to the uncovering of the hideout in Hadwagan-Sernihal forest, they said. The forces seized a fragmentation grenade, 35 rounds of AK rifle, seven Pike rounds, two magazines, seven pistol rounds, two tiffin boxes, a kerosene stove, a radio set, one UBGL, utensils, 1 kg of an explosive-like material in polythene, 2 kg of explosive materials in steel container, a cassette player, IED equipment with wire and a pouch, the officials said.
All the ammunition were rusted and appeared very old, they said.
A joint team of the Jammu and the Kathua police and the Special Operations Group has solved the case of a drone shot down by troops on May 29 at Talli-Hariya Chak area of Kathua district, which was loaded with UBGL rounds and sticky bombs among others, ADGP Mukesh Singh told reporters here.
He said the case involved another drone shot down at Manyari in Kathua on June 20, 2020, which was carrying a huge payload, including an M4 rifle and other explosive materials.
Singh said the team apprehended many suspects on the basis of technical analysis and subsequently zeroed in on Habib of Harie Chak of Kathua.
During questioning, he admitted that he was the receiver of multiple consignments of arms and ammunition dropped via drones controlled from the Pakistani side and that that he was part of an illegal terror-associates network.
He further said he was motivated by Faisal Muneer of Talab Khatikan area of Jammu city and was working on his directions, the ADGP said.
The consignments received by Habib were carried to Jammu and delivered to different people on directions of Faisal, he said.
Subsequently, Faisal Muneer was picked up and questioned, during which he accepted his links with Pakistan-based handlers and his involvement in this terror nexus, the officer said.
Muneer disclosed he was in touch with Pakistan-based handlers for over two years and that he received more than 15 drone-dropped consignments at multiple locations in Samba and Kathua, including Manyari, Mawa, and Hari-e-Chak, the ADGP said.
On disclosures made by Muneer, seizures were made from his residence which included an AK 46 rifle, two magazines, 60 rounds, five pistols, 15 magazines, 100 rounds, two pistol silencers, eight grenades and a weighing machine, besides weapon cleaning accessories, Singh said.
He said another accused, Miayan Sohail of Kathua, was also arrested, and involvement of more people in the network is suspected.
Replying to a query, Singh said the seizure of silencers points towards designs of selective killings.
Majority of the weapons and explosives airdropped through drones in the last two years have been recovered, he said.
Efforts to track down two more members of the module is on, the officer said.
He also said that two modules were busted in Rajouri district and five members of the LeT were arrested. A large cache of arms, ammunition and explosives, including two AK rifles, six pistols, three silencers, eight grenades, three UBGLs, six pistol magazines, six AK magazines, 120 rounds, besides other explosive material were seized, Singh said.