Schools bomb scare: Delhi Police writes to Russian firm, seeks CBI help as probe intensified

New Delhi: A day after more than 200 schools in Delhi-NCR received bomb threat e-mails that created scare of an unprecedented scale, the Delhi Police on Thursday approached Russian mailing service company Mail.ru via Interpol to trace the exact source of the e-mails, official sources said.

Police have also written to the CBI seeking information through Interpol channels about the threat e-mails.

The FIR registered in connection with the case has stated that the intention of the bomb hoax e-mails received by the schools was to create mass panic and disturb public order in the national capital. It was registered against unknown persons.

Over 200 schools in Delhi-NCR Wednesday morning received a hoax bomb threat via e-mail which led to widespread panic among parents and students, prompting authorities to suspend classes and ask parents to pick their wards from the schools.

Police sources said the investigators have used their social media intelligence teams to examine the e-mail ID -- '[e-mail]', and that they have approached the Russian company to trace the IP (internet protocol) address of the device from which the e-mail was sent. A senior police officer has confirmed about the development.

According to police, the investigators have suspected that the sender has used the VPN (virtual private network) to hide his identity while sending the e-mail.

Police during the investigations have found that a school in south Delhi had also got a hoax threat e-mail in 2023 where the sender had used the same mail service, mail.ru, an officer said, adding that the sender in that case is still untraced.

But in the latest case, the Delhi Police has written to the company via Interpol, which is an international organization that facilitates worldwide police cooperation, seeking help in accessing the details of the sender, the officer further said.

However, according to a cyber security expert, tracking the IP address and details of the sender could become difficult if he has used the VPN or proxy server for sending the e-mail.

On a question of why the sender has used Russian company's mailing service to send such e-mail, he said, 'There are many mailing services including 'mail.ru', which provide the facility to make your account without authentication and verification. It also gives the facility to make a temporary e-mail.' Meanwhile, many schools on Thursday reopened to normalcy but attendance took a hit even in schools where the threat was not received, principals of some schools told PTI.

The schools now plan to issue a fresh advisory to parents asking them to send their children for classes and assuring them that all guidelines for handling bomb threats are being followed by the administration.

The Delhi Police has also written to the CBI seeking information through Interpol channels about the hoax bomb threat e-mail, officials said on Thursday.

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), the designated National Central Bureau of India and also known as Interpol India, is responsible for all the communication and coordination with the Interpol, they added.

The agency is likely to forward the information sought by the Delhi Police to the Interpol, which in turn will send it to all the member law-enforcement agencies of the world, the officials said.

The investigators are also taking the help of IFSO (Intelligence Fusion and Strategic Operations) and other agencies including Indian Cybercrime Coordination Centre (I4C) to crack the case.

In the case, the FIR has been registered at Special Cell Police Station under IPC sections 505 (2) (statements creating or promoting enmity, hatred or ill-will between classes), 507 (criminal intimidation by an anonymous communication), and 120 (B) (punishment of criminal conspiracy).