Bomb threats to airlines: Nagpur police identify man behind series of hoax threats, suspect on the run

Image used for representation purspose only.
| Photo Credit: The Hindu

Police in Maharashtra’s Nagpur have identified a 35-year-old man from Gondia in the State as the person behind a spate of hoax bomb threats that triggered panic, caused flight delays and led to increased security at airports and other establishments, an official said.

The Nagpur city police’s Special Branch has identified the man as Jagdish Uikey, an author of a book on terrorism, who was arrested in 2021 in a case, he said.

“Uikey is currently on the run after these emails were traced back to him,” the senior police official said.

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

Mr. 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), the official said.

On Monday (October 28, 2024), the Nagpur police stepped up security outside Deputy Chief Minister and Home Minister Devendra Fadnavis’s residence in the city after Mr. 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, he added.

Mr. Uikey’s email sent on October 21 to Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, and also forwarded to the DGP and RPF, led to security measures at railway stations, the official said.

“A special team has been formed to arrest Uikey,” he said, adding that he will be apprehended him soon.

In 15 days till October 28, over 410 domestic and international flights operated by the Indian carriers have received hoax bomb threats. Most of the threats were issued through social media.

On Sunday, Civil Aviation Minister K. Rammohan Naidu said the Centre is mulling steps to ban perpetrators, who resort to hoax bomb threats, from flying.