Ambani threat: Suspects did a thorough recce

Security personnel outside Antilia at Altamount Road on Friday. Pics/Ashish Raje

A day after a vehicle with 21 gelatin sticks was found outside Mukesh Ambani's residence, Antilia, in South Mumbai, Mumbai Crime Branch officers spotted the suspect, whose face was covered with a scarf, in CCTV footage. After getting out of the Scorpio, the suspect left in a white Innova. The Crime Branch has not ruled out the terror angle.

Security personnel outside Antilia on Friday

Generally, terror organisations claim such incidents but in this case, no one has come forward even after over 24 hours. We cannot rule out anything until we get full clarity," a senior IPS officer said. Police also confirmed that the number plates found inside the vehicle belong to the Ambani family's convoy. "It is clear that the person recced the area and noted the registration numbers. The parking place was pre-decided. And the recce was done before the vehicle was stolen from Vikhroli," the officer added.

In CCTV footages, the Innova was seen entering the city at 1.20 am on Thursday, the Scorpio joined it at Priyadarshani Park at 1.40 am. Via Dadar and Haji Ali, they reached Altamount Round and the Scorpio was parked at 2.18 am. The driver of the Scorpio got down within seconds and left in the Innova. At 3.15 am, the Innova was seen at Mulund toll Naka, after which it disappeared. "After Mulund, we are facing some difficulties with regard to CCTV footage to track the movement but we are on it," the officer added. The Crime Branch has formed 10 teams to look into the various aspects of the case.

The Scorpio that was left near Antilia on Thursday

The owner of the stolen Scorpio is from Thane. Mansukh Hiren told police that his vehicle was stolen from the highway. He had registered an FIR on February 18 with Vikhroli police.

Origins of the gelatin sticks
According to police, the 20 gelatin sticks were procured from Nagpur-based Solar Industries India Limited. "The total weight of the sticks was around 2.5 kg, which has the capacity to blow up at least three vehicles if connected with an explosive mechanism," the officer added.

Inside the bag containing the sticks, police also found a single page note saying, "niTA bHABI aur mKESH bhyya aur fEMILI ek jalak he ye. Agli bar ye saman pora konekt ho ke ayega.Tum pora femili ko udane ke liye intejam ho gaya hai.Sambal Gud nit." "The content of the letter suggests the messenger is trying to pretend that he is illiterate," the officer added.

Chairman of Solar Industries Satyanarayana Nuwal told mid-day, "We follow all government guidelines to sell and manufacture our products. Their details are always shared with police and the explosives department." While the sticks had the name of the company on them, Nuwal also added, "Our sticks don't have a unique identification code as such. The boxes in which they are packed have unique codes and manufacturing dates by which we can easily identify the buyer. It is not possible to identify the buyer based on the sticks." Officers of the National Investigation Agency (NIA) too, visited the spot. They are conducting a parallel probe.

2.18
Time in the morning on Thursday when the Scorpio was seen parked at Altamount Road