Author: Ritu Sarin
Publication: The Indian Express
Date: January 29, 2010
URL: http://www.indianexpress.com/news/missing-link-in-probe-headleys-african-associate-in-mumbai/572899/
While the two women who were frequently spotted
with David Headley during his nine visits to India - a 30-year-old Moroccan
and 28-year-old Mumbai hotel employee - have since been identified, Indian
agencies are still trying to trace an African national who has been described
as a "close associate" of the Lashkar-e-Toiba operative.
The identity of the African, sources told
The Indian Express, remains a key missing link in the probe which, by now,
has involved questioning scores of individuals across the country and scrutiny
of hundreds of telephone numbers, call details and emails.
While a mention of the mysterious African associate came after questioning
a Headley contact, the link resurfaced once text messages sent by Rahul Bhatt
to Headley - from the phone left behind in the suitcase - were scrutinized.
One SMS sent by Bhatt mentions "a born-again ni...r (derogatory reference
to a Black)"
The Mumbai hotel employee has taken this trail
further. While she said she had no inkling of Headley's "Pakistani identity"
or his terror links, she said he would often go "pillion-riding on the
motorcycle of a black African" in and around Mumbai.
Incidentally, this woman has told investigators
that she was in touch with Headley - via phone, SMS and email -until as late
as September 14, 2009 - a fortnight before he was arrested by the FBI in Chicago.
Call Detail Records (CDRs) of Headley's Moroccan
girlfriend, sources said, threw up some red herrings. On it was the number
of a New Jersey-based US national, who has since been identified and his travel
details revealed that in 2009 he visited Rishikesh and Manali and then - along
with a Russian woman - left for Goa.
The couple is yet to be traced.
While it is now confirmed that the Moroccan
woman stayed with Headley in the Taj Hotel during his first stay there (April
28-30, 2007), details provided by the immigration office show that she was
scheduled to take a Karachi flight on May 3, 2007 but was off-loaded since
she reported sick and left two days later.
She again crossed into India from the Attari-Wagah
land route on May 4, 2008, and returned to Pakistan only on July 17. Her visa,
which was earlier valid till July 3, was extended till the date she left for
Pakistan.
A scrutiny of Headley's monetary transactions
in India has also been carried out. The secretary he employed has revealed
that "business" was quite poor. Scores of applicants who were "interviewed"
by Headley and Rana have also said that nothing "tangible" came
out of their attempts to migrate to the US and Canada through Headley's immigration
centre.
A pattern of both Headley and Rana making
"business-related" payments with cash has been mapped with Headley
now known to have received funds via Western Union money transfer facilities.
However, while staying in 5-star hotels, Headley used credit cards. For instance,
he settled a bill of Rs 22,837 for his second stay in Taj Hotel (May 3, 2007)
using his MasterCard but used his American Express card when he paid Rs 30,000
for his stay in the Oberoi Trident (April 30-May 2, 2007).
Also, in a two-year period, he ran up a purchase
bill of Rs 2.4 lakh for goods bought mostly in Mumbai. One of the cards, scrutiny
has revealed, was also used in August 2007 in Morocco and, in May 2008, in
Australia.
The shopping sprees of both Headley and Rana
were clearly a "cover" since most of the goods bought were left
behind by them. Besides a packed suitcase, fax machine and golf set, Headley
also dumped copies of the Quran, Bible and Bhagwat Gita he had purchased in
Mumbai.
Rana and his wife, Samraz Rana Akhtar, their
relatives have said, also fit the pattern. Samraz's cousin, with whom the
couple spent a night in Navi Mumbai, revealed that their guests showed "great
urgency" to visit Centre One, a shopping mall located close to their
house, but left behind all clothes and accessories they bought for Rs 6,500
when they left for Meerut and Delhi.
