Kerala-born Norwegian Rinson Jose linked to pager blasts?

KOZHIKODE: A man from Wayanad who briefly trained for the clergy before migrating to Norway in search of greener pastures has emerged as an alleged link in the sensational pager explosions in Lebanon on Tuesday that targeted Hezbollah fighters and killed 12 people, including civilians, and injured dozens.

Norta Global Ltd, based in Sofia, Bulgaria - allegedly owned by Rinson Jose (37) of Wayanad, now a Norwegian citizen - is being probed by international security agencies following reports linking it to the sale of hundreds of pagers.

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Last spoke to family 3 days ago

Central intelligence agencies and Kerala Police special branch collected details on Friday about Rinson from his native village, Ondayangadi, near Mananthavady, Wayanad. Wayanad district police chief Taposh Basumathary said police had done a normal background check. "Now that the identity and details of the family have come out in the media, police have taken steps to ensure they are safe. We are patrolling the area," he said.

Family sources said Rinson, son of Moothedath Jose and Gracy, who used to work as tailors, had gone abroad with his twin brother, who now works in the UK. His sister is a nurse in Ireland. He lives in Norway with his wife and had last come home in Nov 2023 and returned in Jan 2024.

"Rinson last spoke to his family here three days ago. They haven't been able to contact him on the phone since. We tried calling Rinson's wife on Friday as well, but no one answered. The news reports about him are unbelievable; he could also have been deceived," Rinson's uncle, Thankachan, told TOI.

Is Norta linked to pager purchase?

Hungarian media reported that Norta Global had facilitated the sale of the pagers. The firm's website - which described it as a leading technology company with strong focus on consulting, technology and payment integration, recruitment & outsourcing - has been taken down now.

However, Bulgaria's State Agency for National Security said that Norta Global and its owner had "not carried out any transaction linked to the sale or purchase of the merchandise" or that which "falls under laws on terrorism financing".

Reuters had reported on Thursday that Norta's Bulgarian headquarters was registered at an apartment building near Sofia that was also home to nearly 200 other companies, but there was no sign of Norta.

Reuters said Rinson declined to comment on the pagers when reached by phone and hung up when asked about the Bulgarian business.

Amund Djuve, the CEO of DN Media, where Jose currently works, told Reuters he was aware of the reports and had alerted police and security services. He said that Jose was travelling to the US.

Oslo Police said it had initiated "preliminary enquiries into the information that had come to light". Norway's domestic intelligence agency, PST, said it was aware of the situation and declined to comment further, Reuters reported.

According to Rinson's LinkedIn page, he has been working in the Oslo-based DN Media Group in Norway for nearly five years and was involved in leading digitisation, automation, and growth across multiple brands/publications. Besides mentioning him as an entrepreneur running NortaLink, an IT service, consultancy, procurement, and recruiting company from 2016 onwards, it identifies him as co-founder of an IT recruiting and business development firm and IT recruitment firm StarCruiter. Rinson had pursued a master's in international social welfare and health policy at Oslo Metropolitan University from 2012 to 2015. The profile also claims he was general secretary of International Students Union of Norway for one year from Sept 2012.

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The boy who could do no wrong

In Ondayangadi, residents of the area said they knew Rinson as an upright person, while his shocked family members said they were sure he would not do anything wrong. Rinson's uncle, Thankachan, said Rinson studied at Ondayangadi school, then went to a seminary for a year, and later continued his studies in Wayanad and Bengaluru. He had worked at a call centre in Bengaluru and acquired an MBA from Pondicherry in 2010 before heading to Norway for higher studies. He said he didn't know of Rinson owning a company there. "He was an employee at an organisation... The family is not that well off. Even now, his parents do tailoring work at home," he said.