Maharashtra ATS arrests youth from Pune over ‘contact with terror operatives’ in J&K

The ATS has identified the man as Junaid Mohammed, who is in his early 20s and hails from Khamgaon town in the state’s Buldhana district. He has been staying with relatives in Dapodi and works at the shop of a scrap dealer, they said.

An ATS officer said, “The suspect has been in contact with alleged terror operatives from Jammu and Kashmir through phone messenger groups. We are also looking at the possibility of some of the contacts being from Pakistan. He has changed his cell phone number several times to try to go undetected and remain in these groups. He was part of several terror-related discussions that were held in the groups. Probe has also revealed that he had received an amount of Rs 10,000 from alleged terror operatives.”

At 3 pm on Tuesday, Junaid was produced before a court in Pune. The prosecution told the court that as per the primary probe, the suspect has been in contact with Kashmir-based operatives of the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT). Seeking 10 days’ police custody of Junaid, the prosecution lawyer said that he received two transfers of Rs 5,000 each from suspected terror operatives.

The ATS, in its remand application, claimed that Junaid is involved funding and recruitment for the banned LeT. The ATS has said that it is probing whether Junaid has done recce of sensitive locations including places of religious significance, vital installations and defence establishments in the country, as suggested in the preliminary probe.

Addressing the investigation officer, the court said that the probe in the case is expected to be thorough and in-depth. “The court is hereby granting police custody till June 3,” it said.

The investigating officer told the court that for further probe, the ATS will take Junaid to Kashmir, a place which he had visited six times in the last two years.