
In a major breakthrough into the Pulwama suicide attack, where 40 CRPF personnel were killed, the National Investigation Agency has identified the owner of the vehicle that was used by Jaish militant Adil Ahmad Dar. NIA said the vehicle — a Maruti Ecco — was last sold to Sajjad Bhat, a native of Bijbehara in Anantnag.
Sajjad, NIA said, is absconding and had acquired the vehicle on February 4, 2019. The probe agency also revealed that Sajjad has joined the JeM.
Video: What is JeM, the terror group that attacked the CRPF convoy
“Sajjad is a student of Siraj-ul-Uloom, Shopain. A raid was conducted by NIA team at his house with the help of J&K Police on February 23. However, Sajjad was not present in his house and has been evading arrest since then. He has reportedly now joined JeM. A photograph to this effect has also appeared in social media where Sajjad is seen holding weapons,” an NIA statement said.
NIA investigators, with the support of forensic and automobile experts, pieced together remnants of the vehicle and found that the chassis number of the Maruti Eeco was MA3ERLF1SOO183735 and its engine number was G12BN164140.
It was sold to Mohammad Jaleel Ahmed Haqani, a resident of Heaven colony, Anantnag, in 2011. It subsequently exchanged hands seven times and finally reached Sajjad, NIA added.
After doing a recce of the attack spot on Thursday and Friday last week, NIA investigators picked up several samples and said the car was likely to be manufactured in 2010-11 and might have been re-painted in the years gone by.
Investigators found shards of a jerrycan and a metal piece with a number. The jerrycan — 20-25 litres in capacity — was suspected to have been used to pack around 30 kg of RDX to make the improvised explosive device (IED) kept in the car.
Eyewitnesses said the car was red in colour. Investigators stumbled upon a metal piece with a number that was thought to be part of the car chassis but it turned out to be red herring as it led to a car that was intact and had nothing to do with the blast.