New Delhi, Sep 14 (IANS) A habitual cyber fraudster who threatened to carry out an RDX blast in Mumbai during the Ganeshotsav festival has been arrested in a joint operation by the Bihar Cyber Crime Police and Mumbai Police.
The accused was earlier detained in Noida by a special team and later handed over to the Mumbai Police for further interrogation.
The accused, identified as Ashwin Supra, had sent a terror threat via WhatsApp to the Mumbai Traffic Police, claiming that 400 kg of RDX was planted in 34 vehicles across the city, and that over one crore lives were at risk.
The alarming message, sent just as Ganesh Chaturthi celebrations were concluding, triggered a massive security response in Mumbai. Bomb detection squads were deployed at key locations, and intelligence agencies were roped in to verify the threat. While no explosives were found, the message caused widespread panic.
According to officials, Ashwin had previously threatened a businessman in Bihar and has been involved in multiple cyber fraud cases.
Earlier, on September 6, Ashwini was arrested in Noida. According to police, he had been living in Noida for the last five years. Acting on information received during the investigation, Mumbai Police contacted their counterparts in Noida, following which a dedicated police team was formed.
The team traced Ashwini to Sector-113 in Noida, took him into custody, and later handed him over to Mumbai Police for further investigation.
During the arrest, police recovered seven SIM cards from his possession. He already has two criminal cases registered in Patna, and is believed to have impersonated others to carry out financial frauds.
In his preliminary statement, the accused claimed to be an astrologer by profession. His mobile phone, allegedly used to send the threat, has been seized. Authorities are currently investigating his mental health, possible extremist links, and the motive behind the hoax.
Further investigation is underway.
–IANS
rs/dpb