Although the purpose of his visit is unknown, officials in the security establishment believe that the hotel served as a base in his hunt for terror targets in the vicinity.
Tahawwur Rana, a Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) suspect and associate of Pakistan-born American national David Coleman Headley, had stayed in a five-star hotel in Powai in November 2008, just days before the Mumbai terror attacks. Although the purpose of his visit is unknown, officials in the security establishment believe that the hotel served as a base in his hunt for terror targets in the vicinity.
Rana and Headley are in custody of the Federal Bureau of Investigation in Chicago and have been indicted for their roles in the 26/11 attacks. “Rana had booked a room at the Renaissance Mumbai Convention Centre Hotel in Powai in his name and had stayed for two days (November 20, 21) with his wife,” confirmed an officer privy to the investigations.
“He had issued advertisements in leading Mumbai newspapers about his immigration agency, First World Immigration Services, based in Chicago. He had also conducted interviews with job aspirants,” said the officer, adding that Headley was not in India during that time.
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) is conducting enquiries about Headley and Rana’s stay in Mumbai. “The Indian Institute of Technology and a military camp are based in Powai. We believe that the stay could have been used by Rana to obtain knowledge about these important locations,” the officer said.
Headley had changed his name from Daood Gilani in 2006 to David Coleman Headley. He was arrested in the US in October last year by the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force at the O’Hare International Airport just before he boarded a flight to Philadelphia with an intention to travel further to Pakistan.
He has been accused of plotting terror attacks on behalf of the LeT against India and against the facilities and employees of the Danish newspaper which had published cartoons of Prophet Mohammad in 2005.
Rana, a Canadian citizen and resident of Chicago, has also been named in the case. Rana’s First World Immigration Services has offices on Devon Avenue in Chicago, as well as in New York and Toronto. He reportedly told the FBI during his interrogation that the LeT planned attacks on the National Defence College in New Delhi, two high-profile boarding schools in north India and tourist destinations frequented by foreigners ahead of the 26/11 anniversary.
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