Nagpur cops arrest man behind hoax bomb threats to airlines, hotels

Mangalore Today News Network

Nagpur, October 29, 2024: The Nagpur Police arrested a 35-year-old man from Maharashtra’s Gondia, who was allegedly behind the spate of hoax bomb threats that triggered panic, caused flight delays, and led to increased security at airports and other establishments, said sources familiar with the matter on Tuesday.

The Nagpur Police Special Branch identified the man as Jagdish Uikey, an author of a book on terrorism, who was arrested in 2021 in a separate case, said officials, adding that he was identified after the hoax emails were traced back to him.

The investigation, led by Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Shweta Khedkar uncovered detailed information linking Uikey to the emails, reported news agency PTI.

Uikey sent emails to various government bodies, including the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO), Railway Minister, Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and his deputy, airline offices, the Director General of Police (DGP) and the Railway Protection Force (RPF), an official said.

On Monday, the Nagpur police stepped up security outside Deputy Chief Minister and Home Minister Devendra Fadnavis’s residence in the city after Uikey sent an email threatening to protest unless given a chance to present his information on the secret terror code he claimed to have deciphered.

He also requested a meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi to discuss his knowledge of terror threats.

Bomb scares disrupt air travel

Bringing turbulence to India’s aviation industry, more than 300 flights operated by the Indian carriers received hoax bomb threats in 13 days till October 26, with most of them being issued through social media platforms.

On October 22 alone, around 50 flights, including 13 each of IndiGo and Air India received bomb threats, prompting the airline authorities to conduct thorough security checks at airports.

Earlier on October 26, the Centre issued an advisory to all social media platforms, asking them to comply with provisions of the Information Technology (IT) Rules and Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita (BNS) and take necessary actions to take down bomb threat posts.

In the past few weeks, several hotels, schools and other establishments have also received similar warnings, causing panic and prompting authorities to conduct security scanning of the site.