A special National Investigation Agency court has issued a letter of request to a competent judicial authority in China seeking assistance to trace the supply chain and end-user details of a GoPro camera connected to the April terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam, The Indian Express reported on Wednesday.
The court issued a Letter Rogatory, or a request for assistance from a foreign judicial authority, to the competent judicial office in China, the newspaper reported.
The order came on an application filed by National Investigation Agency Deputy Inspector General Sandeep Choudhary under Section 112 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, which allows Indian courts to request evidence from the authorities in foreign countries.
The terror attack at Baisaran near Pahalgam town in Jammu and Kashmir on April 22 left 26 persons dead and 16 injured. The terrorists targeted tourists after asking their names to ascertain their religion, the police said. All but three of those killed were Hindu.
During the investigation, the NIA seized several electronic devices and material objects connected to the conspiracy and execution of the attack, the newspaper reported.
Among them, a GoPro Hero 12 Black camera was identified as crucial for establishing pre-attack reconnaissance, movement patterns and operational preparation of the terrorist module, PTI reported.
The investigation agency said it had issued a notice to the manufacturer, GoPro BV, seeking details of the supply chain and activation of the device, according to the news agency.
In its response, GoPro informed the agency that the camera had been supplied to AE Group International Limited, a distributor based in Dongguan, China, and activated there on January 30, 2024.
According to the NIA, the manufacturer added that it did not possess records of downstream transactions or the end-user.
“The activation, initial use and commercial trail of the said device lie within the territorial jurisdiction of the People's Republic of China, and the information necessary to trace the purchaser, end-user and associated technical records can only be obtained through judicial assistance of the Chinese authorities,” the NIA’s application further stated.
Since India and China do not have a bilateral Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty, the Jammu court observed that the request could be made under the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organised Crime, to which both countries are signatories.
The Ministry of Home Affairs has approved the issuance of the Letter Rogatory, PTI reported.
The information sought is very important for “establishing the chain of custody, user, attribution and evidentiary linkage of seized device” the court said in its order.
It directed that translated copies of the request be uploaded and forwarded through diplomatic channels.
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