Crime branch had to mount surveillance to locate suspect

A minor error in the residence address given by Sandeep Menon, the techie arrested on Monday for making a hoax call to a Delhi-bound Go Air flight on November 10, had created a stir within the crime branch.

A minor error in the residence address given by Sandeep Menon, the techie arrested on Monday for making a hoax call to a Delhi-bound Go Air flight on November 10, had created a stir within the crime branch.

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To complicate matters for the crime branch, Menon had identified himself as Ambarish Parikh, who was onboard the flight, said Deepak Phatangare, senior police inspector of Unit 8 of the crime branch. But Parikh, when confronted with the details of the call, had told the crime branch that it was Menon’s phone number. The crime branch, which swooped down on Menon’s residential address, found the address provided was wrong. The agency then had to mount technical surveillance for a period of two days to locate Menon’s cell phone, which was still in use. Menon was located and arrested by tracing his cell phone number.

Menon, who on Wednesday was handed to the airport police for further probe, was produced before a holiday court and was remanded in custody till Thursday. He would be produced before a regular court on Thursday.

Menon had on November 10 called up the airline office and told them that there was a bomb on the Mumbai-Delhi Go airways flight 343. Menon, 44, of Vile Parle, who is an Associate Member of the Institution of Engineers (AMIE) profession, works as a software programmer for various national and international universities in virtual e-classes.

Crime branch sources said Menon had made the hoax call because they were business rivals. Menon wanted to teach Parikh a lesson because of which he called the Go Air office and told them that there was a bomb on board. He also told the police he never thought the incident would take such a serious turn.