Patna: Mumbai police have arrested a man who allegedly sent a hoax message threatening serial bombings during the Ganesh Chaturthi festival, triggering a major security alert across the city.
The accused, identified as 50-year-old Ashwin Kumar Supra, originally from Patna in Bihar, was detained late last week from a residential society in Noida, Uttar Pradesh, where he had been living for five years working as an astrologer and vastu consultant.
Police said Supra sent a WhatsApp message on Thursday night claiming that 14 operatives of a group calling itself Lashkar-e-Jihadi had infiltrated Mumbai and planted 400kg of explosives in 34 vehicles, threatening mass casualties. The message, received at the height of Ganeshotsav celebrations, prompted an immediate high alert and a multi-agency investigation involving the crime branch and the Anti-Terrorism Squad.
A technical team quickly traced the origin of the message to Noida. When Supra was arrested, officers seized mobile phones, SIM cards, memory card holders and other electronic items, which are now undergoing forensic analysis.
During interrogation, Supra reportedly told investigators the threat was not linked to any terror organisation but was an act of personal revenge. He claimed that in 2023 he had been jailed for three months in Patna in connection with a fraud case filed by a man named Firoz, and had since harboured resentment against him. Police said Supra admitted he used the terror threat to falsely implicate Firoz.
Authorities are now verifying the details of the alleged fraud case and Firoz’s identity. While initial findings suggest the threat was motivated by personal vendetta rather than extremist links, investigators are examining Supra’s electronic devices for any wider connections.
