Mumbai: The Maharashta Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) on Wednesday made one more arrest in connection with the case against Jogeshwari resident Faisal Mirza, who was arrested earlier this month on terror charges.
The accused identified as Allahrakha Mansuri (30) is a resident of Gandhinagar in Gujarat. “Investigations have revealed that Mr. Mansuri was in touch with Mr. Mirza and his handler, Farookh Devadiwala, who is in Sharjah. Mr. Mansuri has made several calls to Mr. Mirza and Mr. Devadiwala. We are finding out the exact nature of their conversations,” an ATS officer said.
Another officer who is part of the investigation said Mr. Mansuri is suspected to have been assigned the role of helping Mr. Mirza with logistics. “Inputs indicate that weapons and explosives were to be provided to Mr. Mirza by sea. We suspect Mr. Mansuri was put in charge of receiving the arsenal and making sure it reach Mr. Mirza to be used in attacks in Mumbai, Gujarat, and Uttar Pradesh,” the officer said.
Meanwhile, sources said Mr. Devadiwala, a distant cousin of Mr. Mirza, had been taken into custody by the United Arab Emirates (UAE) police.
“We are in touch with the UAE police, and efforts are under way to deport Mr. Devadiwala so that he can be questioned about his association with Mr. Mirza and Mr. Mansuri. He is also a suspect in some terror attacks in India, for which his custodial interrogation is required,” sources said.
Mr. Devadiwala’s interrogation is also necessary as he is an old-time aide of gangster Dawood Ibrahim Kaskar, a wanted accused in the 1993 bomb blasts. He could provide crucial information about Dawood’s criminal activities in Pakistan and the Middle East.
On May 11, Mr. Mirza (32) was arrested for allegedly travelling to Pakistan and undergoing training at a terrorist camp for two weeks, after which he returned to Mumbai and was asked to wait for orders.
