A 47-year-old man from Mysuru in Karnataka has been arrested by the Delhi Police for allegedly sending more than 1,000 hoax threat messages to key institutions across India, reported the IANS.
The accused, identified as Srinivas Louis, was detained on Thursday from his rented accommodation during a joint operation involving Delhi Police and local police teams, police said.
According to officials, several prominent institutions were targeted, including the Delhi High Court, the Delhi Assembly, schools, and various government offices.
These threats, mostly related to bomb scares, led to multiple evacuations and high-alert situations over the past few weeks.
However, police later confirmed that all the threats were false and intended to create panic.
Authorities are continuing their investigation to determine the motive behind the repeated hoax messages. Officials are also trying to establish whether the accused acted alone or had any accomplices.
Police noted that such hoax threats disrupt normal functioning and place a heavy burden on emergency and security services.
Rise in hoax threats
Officials highlighted that hoax threat messages have become increasingly common in recent months.
Earlier in March, several banks and schools in Delhi received similar bomb threat emails, triggering large-scale security checks. In February, multiple schools in the capital were also targeted, leading to emergency responses.
Threat to Mumbai college
Such incidents have also been reported in other cities. In Mumbai, a bomb threat at St Xavier’s College in Mahim earlier this month turned out to be a hoax after thorough checks.
the police teams, including the Bomb Detection and Disposal Squad (BDDS), were deployed at the sites.
Authorities said adequate security measures have been put in place, and necessary legal action is being taken at the respective police stations, reported the news agency.
Earlier, on March 8, a hospital in Mumbai also received a bomb threat email warning of an “LED blast”, triggering panic among patients and staff.
The BDDS later conducted a thorough inspection of the premises.
Threat to Vidhan Bhavan
In a similar incident in March, the Mumbai Police had launched a search operation at the Vidhan Bhavan premises after the state legislature received a bomb threat through its official website.
According to official sources, the threat message was received before the start of the day’s proceedings during the ongoing state Budget session.
Following the alert, security agencies tightened access to the complex and temporarily restricted entry to facilitate a thorough search operation. Police teams, along with BDDS personnel, scanned the entire area as a precautionary measure.
(with IANS inputs)