ALERT: Dawood Ibrahim's village Mumke is being watched

The probe into the trail of funds to the Indian Mujahideen (IM) has brought don Dawood Ibrahim's village Mumke and its adjoining hamlets on the Konkan coast under the Crime Branch scanner. This development comes in the wake of reports that 33 firearms have been recovered during searches near Ratnagiri, revealed the police.

Though Anti-Terrorism Squad chief Hemant Karkera denied the recovery of arms, a senior police officer, on condition of anonymity, confirmed that some villagers near Khed and Ratnagiri were being watched. And initial investigations have indicated that terrorists are using villages along the coast from Shrivardhan to Ratnagiri to wire money to the IM.

Investments

Heavy investment into the area in the recent past raised suspicion among various law enforcement agencies and spurred the ongoing investigation. The latest findings suggest a nexus between hawala operators and some villagers.

Officials have tracked several residents who have assets beyond their known source of income and the police suspect they could be the missing link between the terrorists and the financiers. Strengthening this belief is the fact that they have also recovered about Rs 15 lakh of tainted money from villagers here in the past two weeks.

From the Gulf

The police say they have also established links between the suspects and immigrants in the Gulf. Incidentally, more than 50 per cent of the population in Mumke is employed in the Gulf.

Confirming the probe, Joint Commissioner of Police (crime) Rakesh Maria said, "Tracking the funding pipeline is taking time."

Why is the area  so sensitive?

The Shrivardhan coast witnessed large-scale arms landing prior to the 1993 blasts in Mumbai. Several families in the area have found their names among the accused and many have been convicted, making them vulnerable to terror outfits.