NIA Begins Probe Into Fake Passports Racket With LTTE Connections

In October 2021, Tamil Nadu 'Q' branch police arrested Letchumanan Marry Franciska in Chennai and another Sri Lankan nation in Madurai with fake passports.

National Investigation Agency personnel | Credit: PTI

Chennai: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) registered a case and started the probe in connection with the arrest of three Sri Lankan nationals with fake passports who were allegedly involved in raising money to revive the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) movements.

According to a report on IANS, out of the three persons, two of them had fake Indian passports while the third person had a fake Spanish passport. All three of them were arrested in October 2021 but a case has been registered after NIA took over the case in January 2022 under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act and Foreigners Amendment Act among others of the Indian Penal Code. 

In October 2021, Tamil Nadu 'Q' branch police arrested Letchumanan Marry Franciska in Chennai and another Sri Lankan nation in Madurai with fake passports. 

In the last week of October 2021, the 'Q' branch arrested another Sri Lankan national with a fake Spanish passport. Of all the three, two persons were arrested while they were about to board a flight to Sri Lanka.

After three persons were arrested on the same lines, NIA has taken up the case and has started the probe into a case with international ramifications. 

The Sri Lankan nationals operating from European countries are working towards drawing huge sums of money from dormant accounts to revive the LTTE, said a report on The Hindu.