Pak number used to hire taxi by terrorists in Pathankot

New Delhi, Jan 2: The terrorists, who carried out the attack in Pathankot, were in regular touch with their Pakistani handlers, who even arranged a taxi for them by calling from a mobile number of that country.

Sources said the terrorists had first used a Toyota Innova vehicle yesterday and it has been found that the driver was called from a Pakistan number.

Security agencies are questioning the driver and trying to find out whether he (driver) had been offering regular services to Pakistan-based smugglers, who have links with the terrorists, or was it a case of him not realising that it was a Pakistan number.

The driver of the Innova was called to a particular spot near Pathankot where the terrorists boarded the vehicle. The sources said that the car was used for travelling on an untarred road and dumped after a while as the rim of the vehicle got damaged.

The terrorist then hijacked an SUV (Mahindra SUV X500) in which a Superintendent of Punjab Police was travelling along with a friend and a cook. The SP and the cook were forced to leave the vehicle while the friend, a jeweller, was taken as hostage. The terrorists snatched a mobile phone from them and used it to dial the number in Pakistan which was used to call the driver of the Toyota Innova.

From this number, they had called their handlers thrice and once to a family member who was told that they were on a suicide mission. Security agencies have found that from the Pakistani mobile number, the handlers were actively giving the directions to the terrorists. Since the Pakistani number was under surveillance, security agencies were able to find out the possible target of the terrorists, leading to dispatching of 160 NSG commandos, army special forces besides others.

PTI