Afroze case gets a photo-twist

MUMBAI: The Mumbai police have alleged that a hidden camera was used to shoot the photographs seized from the office computer of Mohammed Afroze’s brother and co-accused, Mohammed Farooq.
They claim that the pictures are of Rashtrapati Bhavan, South Block and North Block. The police have sent the hard disk seized from Farooq’s Vashi office to the the government examiner of documents at Hyderabad.This office also deals with cyber forensics.
The hard disc contains blurred photographs of South Block, North Block and the offices of the prime minister and home minister and have apparently been shot from a distance. It also contains a map of London and pictures of Al Qaida chief Osama Bin Laden, his associate Mulla Omar and some jehadi literature.
The police have also sought the printouts of the calls made from 10 mobile phone SIM cards that were seized from Farooq’s office some time ago. Last December, the police booked Afroze, Farooq and their London-based uncle Mubarak Musalman for sedition and having links with Al Qaida. The police allege that Farooq received funds from terrorist sources to fund Afroze’s training as a pilot in the US, UK and Australia.
Afroze is accused of being part of a suicide mission to hijack a plane from Heathrow airport in London and ram it into the British parliament on September 11.
The plan fell through following the cancellation of all flights after the attack on the World Trade Center. Afroze was arrested on October 2 but was released on bail in April after the police failed to chargesheet him within the stipulated period.
He then filed a suit against the police seeking damages of Rs 10 crore. The case is currently being heard by the Bombay high court.
On June 21, Farooq surrendered before the court and after the initial judicial custody was remanded to police custody. During this period the police claim to have learnt about the photographs on his office computer.
Meanwhile, investigative agencies in the US, UK and Australia have still not responded to the request of the Mumbai police to furnish information on the Afroze case.
The police expect their counterparts in London to furnish them with details about Mr Musalman, who was questioned by police commissioner M.N.
Singh during his visit there. For their part, the police have confirmed from immigration authorities that Mr Musalman had visited Mumbai in 1995, 1998 and 2001.
The police claim that during his trip here, Mr Musalman visited Afroze’s Cheeta Camp residence in Trombay and convinced the two brothers about jehad. He also gave them the phone number of Mansoor Ilias, an alleged Al Qaida coordinator in Melbourne where Afroze later trained as trainee pilot.
This is mentioned in the statement of Afroze’s father, Abdul Razzak and figures in Afroze’s lie-detector test conducted in February by the Central Forensic Science Laboratory (CFSL).
Afroze also mentioned this in a confessional statement given in-camera before a court that he has now sought to retract.
“Afroze may retract the statement. But we also have statements from the Byculla jail staff and his yoga instructors there whom he used to tell that he was an Al Qaida jehadi and wanted to die for his religion. The police did not ask him to say that. He said it on his own,’’ a senior police official said.
Meanwhile, additional chief metropolitan magistrate, R.D. Gate adjourned till Wednesday the hearing of Farooq’s bail plea. He is currently lodged in the Thane Central Prison.