No link so far between arrested IAF official and Pathankot blast: Police

NEW DELHI: Delhi Police sleuths interrogating a dismissed IAF official, who was arrested from Punjab's Bhatinda, have so far not found any connection between the information he allegedly shared with a suspected ISI-backed operative and the terror attack in Pathankot today.

A Delhi court today remanded the dismissed IAF official, Ranjith KK, arrested earlier this week for allegedly sharing secret information with Pakistan's ISI, to two more days of police custody to enable the agency to interrogate him in connection with the Pathankot terror attack.

"We interrogated the dismissed official for several hours today but so far we haven't found any connection between the information he has shared with a cyber entity, who honeytrapped him over a social neyworking site, claiming to be a woman media personnel from UK and the attack at the Air Force base in Pathankot," said a police official.

"Investigation into the matter is underway and our concerns were legitimate," the official said.

He said that the investigating officer of the case had sought an extension of the remand to ascertain whether any of Ranjith's disclosures had any connection with the Pathankot attack, not that he had made any such disclosures in the first four days of interrogation.

Ranjith KK, a leading aircraft man with Indian Air Force posted at Bhatinda, was dismissed recently and later arrested after a combined operation by Delhi Police's Crime Branch, Military Intelligence and Air Force Liaisoning Unit (LU). He has been booked under Official Secrets Act, police said.

Ranjith was honeytrapped by a cyber entity by the name Damini McNaught, who pretended to be the executive of a UK-based media firm, and claimed that she required Air Force-related information for an article in their news magazine from Ranjith in exchange for pecuniary benefits.

Ranjith allegedly shared Air Force-related information, mostly pertaining to a recent exercise, movements of aircraft and deployment of various units, in exchange for money transferred to his bank account, police said.