Delhi hoax bomb threat: Police trace IP address linked to this city

An official of the Delhi Police said that it would be contacting its counterpart in Hungary for further investigation in the matter soon.

The bomb threats received by approximately 150 schools in Delhi-NCR earlier this month are suspected to have originated from Hungary's Budapest, PTI quoted a Delhi Police statement on Tuesday. The IP address of these emails has been traced to Budapest, a Delhi Police official said adding that it would be contacting its counterpart in Hungary for further investigation in the matter soon, PTI reported.

The threat mail purportedly sent from a mail.ru server said that explosives were planted on school premises in Delhi. (PTI)

The threat mail purportedly sent from a mail.ru server said that explosives were planted on school premises in Delhi. This triggered massive evacuations and searches at the premises of around 150 schools in the national capital. The mail was later declared as a hoax as nothing objectionable was found from the school campuses.

An officer involved in the investigation said the threat was sent from the mail ID, ‘sawariim@mail.ru’, which had a domain based in Russia. “It’s likely the IP addresses may be associated with a VPN and establishing the person’s connectivity will be a challenge. We will seek Interpol’s help by sending it a Demi Official (DO) letter, seeking the details of the person who signed up for the email address,” the officer said earlier.

Mother Mary's School in Mayur Vihar, Delhi Public School in Dwarka, Sanskriti School in Chanakyapuri, Delhi Public School at Vasant Kunj, Amity School in Saket and Delhi Public School (DPS) in Noida Sector 30 were among the first schools to receive bomb threats via email.

The police, after filing an FIR in the case, wrote to the mailing service company 'mail.ru' based in Russia via Interpol. Officials indicated that an initial investigation had raised suspicions of a "deeper conspiracy" orchestrated by a terror group amid the ongoing Lok Sabha elections. They also suggested that the threatening email might have been sent by an ISIS module.

The Delhi government, meanwhile, issued an advisory to the educational institutes asking them to check their official emails timely after the hoax bomb threat at schools in the national capital.

"It is advised that School Administrators/Managers/Heads of Government/Government Aided and Unaided Recognised Schools under the Directorate of Education, GNCT Delhi should ensure that emails/messages received on official email id of the school at any time of the day (before, during or after school hours) are checked timely," the advisory issued by the Directorate of Education said.

It also instructed the school administration to inform the relevant district education officials and the Delhi Police if any suspicious activity is observed.

(With inputs from PTI)