He was transferred to India early Thursday, the place he was formally taken into custody by the NIA.
New Delhi:
Salman Rehman Khan, a terrorist belonging to the banned Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), was extradited by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) from Rwanda at present. Salman was implicated within the Bengaluru Prisons Terror Conspiracy case, the place investigations revealed his involvement in radicalisation and the provision of explosives to terror operatives.
With the collaboration of the Rwanda Investigation Bureau (RIB), Interpol, and National Central Bureaus (NCBs), Salman was arrested in Rwanda’s capital Kigali yesterday. He was transferred to India early Thursday, the place he was formally taken into custody by the NIA.
This marks the seventeenth occasion since 2020 the place the NIA has efficiently facilitated the extradition or deportation of terror-related fugitives.
Salman was lodged in Bengaluru Central Prison, the place he was serving a sentence for a POCSO (Protection of Children from Sexual Offenses) conviction between 2018 and 2022. It was throughout this incarceration that Salman got here into contact with T Naseer, a convicted terrorist serving a life sentence. Investigations revealed that Naseer performed a task in radicalising Salman and orchestrating a terror module throughout the jail partitions.
The NIA’s probe uncovered how Salman, upon being radicalised, turned an lively participant in terror actions. He assisted within the procurement and distribution of arms, ammunition, and explosives for terror operatives. Naseer additionally masterminded plots to facilitate his personal escape throughout court docket appearances, a plan by which Salman was a participant.
When the fear conspiracy was uncovered, Salman fled India, evading authorities till his arrest in Rwanda.
How Salman Was Arrested
The NIA had registered the Bengaluru Prisons Terror Conspiracy case on October 25 final yr, taking on from Bengaluru City Police. Salman, already declared a fugitive, was charged below the stringent UAPA, the Arms Act, and the Explosive Substances Act.
A Red Notice was issued by Interpol on the request of the NIA on August 2 this yr. Authorities in Rwanda, appearing on the discover, arrested Salman and notified Indian companies. This led to a sequence of coordinated efforts between the NIA, the Rwandan National Central Bureau (NCB), and Interpol, finally leading to Salman’s extradition.
In 2024 alone, 26 fugitives have been returned to India by coordinated efforts involving Interpol. These embody people accused of crimes starting from terror to sexual offences, equivalent to Raihan Arabikkalalarikkal, wished for crimes towards minors, who was extradited from Saudi Arabia.