Mumbai police seeks FBI's help on VoIP proof in 26/11

As the Mumbai Police finialises its chargesheet in the 26/11 terror strike cases, the crime branch has approached the FBI for help in attaching the proof of Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) services being used by terrorists of the Lashkar-e-Taiba with their masters in Karachi, Pakistan.

While Mumbai's crime branch has maintained a studied silence over the filing of chargesheet, sources in investigating agencies said the US investigating agency's help had been sought in sharing proof like call details made through VoIP and from the satellite phone.

Though the case is water-tight this kind of proof would further nail Pakistan's claims that the conspiracy of 26/11 was not hatched in that country, senior officials in the investigation agency said, adding the Islamabad's claims that the conspiracy was hatched in Bangladesh was absolutely wrong.

India and the United States share a Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty (MLAT) which came into effect on December three, 2005.

According to the treaty, the ability of the two countries to pursue their common objective of law enforcement of putting in place a legal mechanism to enable them to provide to each other assistance in connection with the investigation, prosecution, prevention and suppression of crime including those relating to terrorism.

The investigations into the Mumbai terror attack revealed that the payment for VoIP service was made from Karachi, indicating Pakistan's link to the attack.

With the help of FBI, it was found that the account had been purchased on a fake identity card in Karachi for which 300 dollars were routed through Western Union money transfer services, the sources said.

The VoIP number brought from Orlando, Florida in the US was being used by the 10 terrorists to remain in touch with their masters across the border including Zaki-ur-Rahman Lakhvi, a Lashkar-e-Taiba operative, who is believed to be the mastermind behind the terror strikes, the sources said.

VoIP is a technology that enables a person to make and receive phone calls through the Internet. Voice is converted into packets of data, sent out over the Internet through a broadband connection, and reassembled at the other end of the line.

The western investigators were quick in carrying out a background check about the identity papers which were found to be fake, the sources said. A critical analysis and decoding of data packets led them to two VoIP numbers which were accessed from six Indian mobile phone numbers, the sources said. 

The investigating agency has also asked for sharing the call details of the Gulf-based satellite phone service operator which was being used by terrorists to remain in touch with Lashkar commanders in Pakistan.

The FBI had taken all clues besides the Internet telephony signatures intercepted by the Indian intelligence agencies when terrorists were talking to their handlers across the border.

The FBI team, which came here on December one, had been able to break into the code of Internet telephony, an expertise lying with US investigating agency.     

The FBI has also registered a case into the 26/11 strike as per the US laws. The agency has to probe the death or torture of any American citizen outside the US and later submit a chargesheet. Six US nationals were killed by terrorists in the attacks.

The agency had also sought the interrogation report of Mohammad Ajmal Amir Iman who was arrested by the police on November 26.

The investigations had also traced back the mail and at what and how may times it was opened in Pakistan, deciphered packets of the satellite conversation between the militants and their handler, and the air length frequency waves used for conversing on the Internet.