MUMBAI ATTACKS PROSECUTION UPDATE

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C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 04 ISLAMABAD 000505

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/09/2019

TAGS: PREL, PTER, PGOV, PK

SUBJECT: MUMBAI ATTACKS PROSECUTION UPDATE

REF: ISLAMABAD 366

Classified By: Anne W. Patterson for reasons 1.4 (b),(d).

1. (C) Summary: On March 4, Federal Investigative Agency

(FIA) Director General Tariq Khosa briefed FBI Director

Mueller on the details of the Mumbai attacks investigation.

The FIA investigative team continues to meet Legatt officers

to discuss the ongoing prosecution and sharing of

information. The FIA currently has four suspects, Zaki

ur-Rehman Lakhvi, Hammad Ameen Sadiq, Mazhar Iqbal (aka al

Qama),Abdul Wajid (aka Zarrar Shah),in its remand. All

four have been charged in a new Anti-Terrorism Court in

Islamabad. On March 17, the suspects will be moved to

judicial detention where the investigators will not have

direct access to them without lawyers. The FIA has stressed

that it needs all evidentiary support from both India and

other countries prior to this date. The FIA investigation

has been robust enough to charge the four suspects, however,

it still lacks sufficient evidence to easily convict the

Mumbai attack suspects. Information and evidence from the

GOI will be crucial to successful conviction of the

perpetrators in Pakistani courts. The Indian High Commission

in Islamabad reports that the Home Ministry has answered the

GOP's 30 questions, but the answers have not reached the

External Affairs Ministry. A summary of outstanding requests

is detailed in paragraphs 9-11. End summary.

FIA DIRECTOR GENERAL KHOSA

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2. (C) FBI Director Mueller met with FIA Director Tariq Khosa

on March 4 to discuss the ongoing cooperation between the two

law enforcement agencies. After the initial meeting, Khosa

excused most of his additional deputies and presented

sensitive information about the Mumbai attacks investigation.

According to Khosa, India passed its dossier to Pakistan

through diplomatic channels on January 5, but the FIA did not

receive this information until January 15 when it was finally

tasked with the investigation. However, the FBI had passed

important tearlines, specifically about the attackers' boat

engines, that prompted the FIA to start its own investigation

prior to January 15. Khosa presented identity information

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about Ajmal Kasab, the lone surviving terrorist in GOI

custody. Though Kasab has no Pakistani identification card,

the FIA was able to trace his family, his village, and his

work history. The other nine perpetrators have not yet been

identified. Khosa believed that if India provides additional

information on the nine individuals, such as cell phone data,

the FIA will be able to identify them as well. Director

Mueller noted the depth and breadth of the FIA investigation

that included link charts, financial leads, and technical

data. Khosa stressed that for a successful prosecution, the

FIA needs evidence from India, including authenticated copies

of the confessions. Khosa also passed a copy of the First

Information Report (FIR) to Director Mueller. (Note. A copy

of the FIR has been emailed to SCA/PB. End Note.)

3. (C) Khosa presented powerpoint slides detailing the main

investigative leads on both suspects and material evidence.

These included:

-Zaki ur-Rehman Lakhvi: He is the alleged mastermind

and is in FIA remand custody. He led an LeT training camp in

Muzaffarabad.

-Hammad Ameen Sadiq: Sadiq was arrested on February 15

and charged by the Anti-Terrorism Court on March 17. He is

currently in FIA remand custody. He was one of the main

facilitators and was linked to the two training sites in

Sindh. Two terrorist bank accounts are also linked to Sadiq.

FBI asked for access to Sadiq. Khosa responded that granting

access was under consideration, however, the FIA could pass

questions to the investigators.

-Mazhar Iqbal (alias Abu al-Qama): He was arrested

February 18 and is in FIA custody. He is another main LeT

leader.

-Abdul Wajid (alias Zarrar Shah): He was a main LeT

communicator and is currently in FIA custody. He has been to

Afghanistan and may have other terrorist links.

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-Javaid Iqbal: The FIA lured him from Spain on an

immigration charge. He is currently in judicial custody

awaiting trial on a separate immigration matter. He is

cooperating with the FIA. A copy of his passport was stolen

by his boss, Muhammad Ashfaq, to wire money from Spain. The

FIA is still waiting for more information from Spain.

-Iftikhar Ali (alias Malik Taimour): He sent money

through Moneygram and is still a suspect at large.

-Muhammad Amjad Khan: He is accused and at large. He

was one of the main facilitators who rented two houses in

Karachi. The FIA has bank account information on Khan.

-Shahid Jameel Riaz: He was very actively involved in

the conspiracy, and went on the boat as a crew member. Riaz

was also part of the financing. He is accused and at large.

-LeT Training Center in Karachi "Azizabad": The site is

currently in FIA custody. Samples have been obtained for DNA

analysis. Other evidence found at the site includes lockers,

small boats, and other marine training equipment.

-LeT Training Center in Goth Ali Nawaz Shah Thatta

"Punj Tehni": This second site is 150 km from Karachi and is

presumably where the terrorists launched their boat. The

site is next to the sea and in a small thatched building.

The FIA found a "pink box" similar to the one described by

Indian authorities. They need more evidence about the box

from the GOI to connect it to the conspiracy. Evidence found

at the site includes boat engines and spare parts.

-Yamaha Engine: This engine was sold in Karachi and the

sport shop owner provided the FIA with a telephone number

that led to one of the main culprits.

-Al-Hussain & Al-Fouz Motorboats: The terrorists had

initially purchased a boat (Al-Hussain) for 180,000 PKR but

it capsized and sank. Right before the attack, they urgently

bought another boat (Al-Fouz) boat for 600,000 PKR. DNA

samples from the Al Fouz boat should connect to the dead

terrorists, once this information is received from India. The

FIA has the crew list for the boats and is currently tracking

the crew members, including Captain Shahid Ghafoor and Sabir

Salfi.

-Voice Over Internet Protocol (VOIP): The FIA requested

immediate support and information from India to access the

VOIP data.

-Thoraya Satellite: The FIA has requested more

information from Interpol Dubai about involved satellite

phone.

-Pistols "Diamond Nedi Frontier Arms Co, Peshawar": The

FIA needs GOI clarification about the gauge of these arms.

4. (C) Detailing the progress thus far, Khosa described it as

"Kasab in Indian custody, four arrested in Pakistan, five

accused and absconded, five suspects, two funding sources,

six witnesses, and eight material exhibits." The FIA

completed its initial probe in two weeks with limited

information from India. The last 15 days have been critical

in formulating the prosecution, but the FIA still needs

significant evidence to successfully convict the suspects.

When asked how much the whole operation might have cost,

Khosa responded that it was done with less than 4 million PKR

(50,000 USD). In response to how to address the India-

Pakistan problem of sharing information, Khosa said that if

India passed its entire 11,000 page chargesheet to the GOP,

there would be no excuse on the Pakistani side for not

sharing information. Khosa also mentioned that India and

Pakistan are institutionally linked and the FIA visited the

Indian Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in 2006. There

is a standing offer for the CBI to visit the FIA in Pakistan.

Director Mueller also offered his help and that of the FBI

to break any impasse between the Indian and Pakistani

investigators.

FIA INVESTIGATIVE TEAM

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5. (C) On March 9, Legatt and Poloff met with the FIA

investigative team on the Mumbai attacks. The meeting was led

by FIA Additional Directors General Qureshi and Iqbal. The

FIA team confirmed that the suspects in custody were

currently in FIA remand and would be transferred on March 17

to judicial custody. Currently FIA has complete access to the

suspects; however, under judicial custody the investigators

would have to go through the suspects' lawyers. Due to this

change in status, the FIA team stressed that receiving

additional evidence from the GOI was imperative before March

17. The FIA confirmed that it has four suspects in custody

and awaiting trial: Zaki ur-Rehman Lakhvi, Hammad Ameen

Sadiq, Mazhar Iqbal (aka al Qama),Abdul Wajid (Zarrar Shah).

6. (C) The FIA and FBI teams discussed the technical details

of the investigation. The FIA confirmed it was following two

Internet Service Provider addresses from which email had been

sent. One of the IP addresses was from a portable provider

(Worldcall) that did not have records for specific users. The

FIA was following up with the other IP provider, Wateen. The

FIA is still looking for voice exemplars of the LeT

controllers from India. They would like this information

prior to March 17 so that they can have the suspects or other

witnesses identify the voices, specifically of Zarrar Shah

and al-Qama.

7. (C) The FIA is concerned about jurisdiction and

evidentiary problems that may arise in the case. The

Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA) does not now apply to

extra-territorial cases, and proving jurisdiction over

terrorist attacks that took place in India may be difficult

absent a change in the law. (Zardari has a draft change in

the ATA that he has not signed.) The fact that the FIA does

not have direct access to the crime scene makes proving the

conspiracy very challenging. Also the FIA is concerned about

the procedural problems of introducing third party (from the

FBI) evidence in Pakistani court for which there is no

precedent. Criminal courts in Pakistan, according to the FIA

team, do not recognize foreign forensic experts. When asked

about an FIA team coming to Washington to exchange

information and evidence with the FBI, the FIA responded that

it was up to the Minister of Interior. The Minister has told

the Ambassador that he plans to visit Washington after March

20 and is willing to share more information. Also the

sharing of the full investigation report was at the

discretion of the Minister of Interior.

INDIAN DEPUTY HIGH COMMISSIONER

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8. (C) The DCM met with Deputy India High Commissioner

Manpreet Vohra on March 9. He confirmed to the DCM that the

Indian Home Ministry had completed the answers to the 30

questions passed by the GOP. The Indian Ministry of External

Affairs had not yet received the answers as of Friday, March

6. The Ministry of External Affairs should receive the

answers this week and will then pass them to the Pakistani

Ministry of Foreign Affairs, according to Vohra.

OUTSTANDING ITEMS

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9. (C) The FIA continues to seek the following items from the

GOI:

-DNA profiles of dead attackers

-Fingerprints of attackers

-Clear photographs of each perpetrator

-Clear forensic photographs of each article seized from

suspects

-Voice recordings of LeT controllers

-Answers to 30 questions passed through diplomatic

channels

10. (C) The FIA continues to seek the following items from

the FBI:

-Digital Photos of the nine deceased attackers

-Forensic photos and serial numbers of the Yamaha engine

-Fingerprints of the attackers

-Telephone Number Data from Callphonex (data owned by

India)

-Satellite Telephone Numbers

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11. (C) The FBI continues to seek the following items from

the FIA:

-Full FIA investigative report

-Access to those in custody

-Biographical information on those charged and arrested

-Locations of training camps and staging areas

-IP address information

-Information on VOIP payments

-Nokia cell phone sales information

-Thuraya SIM card seized from Azizabad

12. (C) The FBI has passed the FIA several pieces of

evidence, including GPS data, data on engines used,

interviews of both Ajmal Kasab and Mubashir Shahid, and data

on IP addresses. The FBI continues to meet with the FIA

investigative team to help facilitate the prosecution and

sharing of information. The FBI would like to bring a team

of FIA investigators to Washington, DC to better enable

evidence sharing.

13. (C) Comment: The FIA investigation to this date has been

robust enough to charge several individuals, however, it

still lacks sufficient evidence to easily convict all Mumbai

attack suspects. Information and evidence from the GOI will

be crucial to successful conviction of the perpetrators in

Pakistani courts. If the four high-level suspects, Zaki

ur-Rehman Lakhvi, Hammad Ameen Sadiq, Mazhar Iqbal (aka al

Qama),Abdul Wajid (Zarrar Shah),are not convicted, the

credibility of Pakistan's resolve against terrorism will be

suspect. The GOP needs technical law enforcement and

evidentiary support to build a strong case against all the

terror suspects. End comment.

PATTERSON

MUMBAI ATTACKS PROSECUTION UPDATE

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