The Mumbai Crime Branch, which is probing the 26/11-type threat received by the city traffic police last week, has not ruled out the terror angle as the IP address used to send the threat messages and some screenshots has thrown up a hazy picture. Officers privy to the investigation said the WhatsApp number used to send the messages belongs to Pakistan but its IP address is from another country. Cops suspect the role of a certain Anees, who is in Doha, as he was involved in making a similar threat earlier.

Senior officers on Monday briefed deputy CM Devendra Fadanvis, who also holds the charge of the crucial home department, about the case. Sources said the Crime Branch has written to WhatsApp to get a real-time IP address to establish the country from which the threat was generated using a Pakistani number. During the initial probe, sources said, the Crime Branch found that all seven numbers shared on the WhatsApp of Mumbai traffic police belong to Bijnor, Uttar Pradesh. The police have so far traced four people who were using the numbers provided by the unknown person threatening a 26/11-type attack.