‘14 terrorists, 400 kg RDX’: Noida astrologer held for hoax Mumbai blast threat, wanted to frame foe

A Noida resident has been arrested for allegedly sending a hoax threat message to the Mumbai Police, claiming that 14 terrorists had entered the city with explosives, to frame a man who had filed a case against him and seek revenge, officials said on Saturday.

The accused, Ashwani Kumar (51), a native of Patna in Bihar, was living in a housing society in Noida’s Sector 79 for the past five years. He described himself as an astrologer and vastu expert, the officials said.

According to the officials, the message received by Mumbai Police on Thursday was traced to Noida, following which Sector 113 police swung into action and arrested Kumar within hours.

Kumar was arrested from Sector 79 and handed over to the Mumbai Police, Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police (Noida) Sumit Shukla told PTI.

Investigators said Kumar admitted that he acted out of personal vendetta.

“He wanted to take revenge from a friend who had filed a case against him in Patna in 2023, in which he was jailed for three months. To settle scores, Kumar sent the threat message to the Mumbai Police using his (friend’s) name,” the officer said.

Mumbai Police was on alert on Thursday after receiving the threat message on WhatsApp which claimed that 14 terrorists had entered the city with 400 kg of RDX planted in 34 vehicles, just days ahead of Anant Chaturthi celebrations, when lakhs gather across the city.

The message, sent to the traffic police’s helpline, mentioned the name of a group called ‘Lashkar-e-Jihadi’. A case was registered at Worli police station under the provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.