New Delhi: The Faridabad Police have found the red Ford EcoSport allegedly belonging to Red Fort blast suspect Umar Un Nabi. The Delhi Police were in hot pursuit of the car after investigation suggested Nabi had another vehicle. Whether the EcoSport is connected to Monday’s explosion, is still not clear.
“The suspicious EcoSport car with number DL 10CK 0458 has been rounded up. The car was found in Khandawali village,” a Faridabad Police spokesperson said.
The car is being handed over to the Delhi Police, it is learnt. A Delhi Police team, forensic experts and a Bomb Detection and Disposal Squad are at the spot.
Sources in Haryana Police said the car was parked at the farmhouse of one of Umar Nabi’s aides, and this person is being questioned regarding his alleged association with the prime suspect and other conspirators.
Nabi is suspected to have been behind the wheel of the white i20 that exploded near Red Fort metro station’s gate no. 1, killing at least 12 people and injuring dozens more. His mother’s DNA samples have been sent to the AIIMS forensic laboratory.
Tracing the movements of Nabi, their prime suspect, investigators had also found CCTV footage of him in a Ford car. The car was originally registered on 22 November 2017, due to which Delhi Police issued an alert for the vehicle.
Sources indicated that someone else had sold the car to Nabi, but the details of this transaction are yet to be determined.
This development coincides with the Delhi Police also picking up around a dozen suspects, who are believed to be directly or indirectly linked to the accused in the case. These suspects are being questioned by multiple investigative agencies, it is learnt.
Investigators also claim to have traced the route the i20 driven by Umar took on the day of the blast. He was found to have entered Delhi Monday morning, following which the vehicle was seen in the Central, East, New, North and North West districts, investigation revealed.
“The car was spotted in Badarpur, Connaught Place, Ranjeet Singh Flyover, Shaheed Bhagat Singh Marg, Ashok Vihar and Netaji Subhash Place in the North West district of the national capital,” an official privy to the probe said.
Meanwhile, the National Investigation Agency, which was handed over the case by the Ministry of Home Affairs Tuesday, has formally taken over the case files, along with key materials and evidence recovered from the site of the explosion.
(Edited by Gitanjali Das)