7/11 verdict: The investigation trail of the 14 absconding goes cold

A Police Video Of IM’s Sadiq Sheikh Saying ‘We Did It’ (Click here for video)

“While filing the chargesheet, we listed 15 wanted accused, including the mastermind and LeT commander, Azam Cheema, and Indian financiers — Rizwan Dawarey and Rahil Shaikh — but till date we have not been able to arrest them or get workable intelligence on them. The only person we have managed to bag custody of is that of Zabiuddin Ansari alias Abu Jundal, the alleged handler of the 26/11 Mumbai attack. However, Jundal was not arrested by us, but by the CIA in June 2012,” said a senior officer.

“In 2012, we were also hopeful of getting another Indian accused, Fayaz Kagzi — who is also an accused in the 2008 Mumbai attack. Kagzi, who initially fled to Pakistan had moved to Saudi Arabia by 2010. But his arrest did not materialise as Kagzi learnt that he was being followed by the CIA and before they could get him, he managed to return to Pakistan. We suspect he is currently in Pakistan,” the official claimed.
Out of the 14 wanted accused, four are Indians and 11 are Pakistani nationals.

The Indian nationals, as identified by the ATS, are Rizwan Dawarey, Rahil Shaikh, Hafiz Zuber and Sohail Shaikh. While Dawarey is suspected to be in Saudi Arabia, Zuber is believed to be in Nepal. Sohail Shaikh is suspected to be in Pakistan. The only Pakistani whose role was sketched out in detail was the alleged mastermind — Azam Cheema. The ATS identified other Pakistani accused as Aslam, Sabir, Abu Bakr, Kasam Ali, Ammu Jaan , Ehsanulah and Abu Hasan.

“By now, all would have taken a new identity and therefore their technical surveillance yields near-zero results,” said the officer.