NIA ARRESTS KEY ACCUSED IN 2016 NAGROTA ARMY CAMP ATTACK

SRINAGAR/NEWDELHI: The National Investigative Agency (NIA) Saturday said it has arrested a key accused in the 2016 attack on Nagrota army camp in Jammu when he was trying to flee to Saudi Arabia from the Delhi’s IGI airport.

“There was a non-bailable warrant pending against accused Mohammed Ashraf Khandey and we had got issued a Look-out-circular (LOC) against him... He was detained at the airport while trying to flee India,” said NIA spokesman and agency’s inspector general Alok Mittal. He added thatkhandeywasa“co-conspirator in facilitating, harboring and transporting” a group of three Pakistani terrorists belonging to the Jaish-e-mohammad (JEM) which carried out the attack in the early hours of November 29, 2016.

The terrorists allegedly infiltrated into India from Kathuasamba sector of J&K and carried out an attack on the 166 Medium Regiment Camp in Nagrota. Seven soldiers were killed in the attack and all three attackers were also neutralised. Khandey is resident of village Achhan in Pulwama in the Valley and the NIA was looking for him for quite some time.

“During investigation, a well planned conspiracy was unearthed and a network of Over Ground Workers of JEM was busted. Three accused -- Sayeed Munir-ul-hassan Qadri, Tariq Ahmed Dar and Mohd Ashiq Baba have already been arrested in the case and are in judicial custody,” said Mittal.

Investigators said all the accused were acting on the “directions of leaders/handlers of Jaish-e-mohammad based in Pakistan for carrying out the terrorist attack.”

KHANDEY WAS A ‘COCONSPIRATOR’ IN FACILITATING A GROUP OF JEM TERRORISTS WHO CARRIED OUT THE ATTACK IN JAMMU