Srinagar: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Sunday claimed arresting a fifth accused in the case of a fidayeen attack on a camp of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) at Lethapora in Jammu and Kashmir’s southern Pulwama district in 2017.
He has been named as Irshad Ahmed Reshi, a resident of Pulwama’s Ratnipora area.
Five CRPF personnel were killed and three others grievously injured in the attack carried out during the intervening night of 30-31 December, 2017 allegedly by Jaish-e-Muhammad (JeM). The camp is located at less than fifty yards from the place where a JeM bomber Adil Dar hit a CRPF convoy on February 14 this year, killing as many as 49 jawans.
NIA spokesman said that Reshi is the fifth accused to have been arrested in the case during "follow up investigation upon disclosures of accused Nisar Ahmed Tantray and Syed Hilal Andrabi arrested earlier."
"Arrested accused Irshad Ahmad Reshi is an active OGW (Over Ground Worker) of proscribed militant organisation Jaish-e-Muhammad (JeM). He was a close associate of slain militant and JeM commander Noor Mohammad Tantray alias Noor Trali," the spokesman said. He added, "The attack on CRPF Group Centre, Lethpora was executed under a conspiracy to avenge the death of Noor Trali, who was killed in an encounter with security forces in December 2017."
The NIA has claimed that Reshi has been found to be a key conspirator "who provided logistic support in form of sheltering and transport for the militants and conducting reconnaissance of the CRPF Group Centre, Lethpora before the attack."
It named the four other persons arrested by it earlier for their alleged involvement in the attack as Fayaz Ahmed Magrey, Manzoor Ahmed Bhat, Nisar Ahmed Tantray and Syed Hilal Andrabi-all local residents.
According to the investigations done by the NIA, three JeM cadres Fardeen Ahmed Khanday, Manzoor Baba and Abdul Shakoor (a resident of Rawalakot area of PoK) carried out the attack at the CRPF camp. All of them were, however, killed in the ensuing gunfight.
The NIA spokesman said that Reshi will be produced before the Special NIA court in winter capital Jammu on Monday with a request for grant of police custody for further investigation.
