It has come to light that Mintoo had trimmed his beard in order to escape being identified. His plan was to come down to Goa where he had spent around 18 years and later escape via Mumbai.
After staying for few days in Goa, he was planning to flee abroad. However, his call conversation helped the SIT to arrest him from Delhi on Monday.
Minto, whose family is learnt to be running a business in Goa, is believed to have fled to Thailand after he was named as an accused in a case of seizure of 24.5 kg explosive material and 25 detonators in Ludhiana in 2008. A native of Dalli village in Jalandhar district, Mintoo remained on the run until 2014, when he was arrested on his return from Thailand.
According to villagers, he had visited Dalli last in 2004.
“Mintoo’s family had shifted from the village over two decades back and some of his family members are settled in Goa and have no link with anyone back home,” said a distant relative.
Meanwhile, Mintoo was on Monday sent to seven days' police custody by a Delhi Court which noted that “custodial interrogation” of the accused was required to unearth conspiracy in the Nabha jailbreak case.
Additional Sessions Judge Reetesh Singh sent Mintoo to custody till December 5 after Delhi Police sought seven days' remand to interrogate him.
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NABBED HOURS AFTER
ESCAPE FROM JAIL
* In a swift operation, Mintoo was arrested in New Delhi on Sunday night
* Delhi Police said he was planning to flee abroad, to Malaysia or Germany
* 48-year-old Mintoo was nabbed from Nizamuddin railway station's parking area
* Mintoo, accused in 10 terror cases, was in touch with terror groups in Pakistan
* One loaded pistol and six live cartridges were recovered from his possession
* He was earlier a member of Babbar Khalsa International and later floated his own group
