Bhatkal Bomb threat email traced to habitual offender lodged in Mysuru Jail

Karwar, July 16 – (Bhatkallys News Bureau) The Uttara Kannada police have successfully cracked the case of a threatening email sent to the Bhatkal Police Station warning of a bomb blast in Bhatkal town within 24 hours. The investigation has led to the identification of a habitual offender, Jatin Sharma, currently lodged in Mysuru prison, as the person behind the threat.

According to Superintendent of Police M Narayan, the accused, Jatin Sharma, hails from Noida in Uttar Pradesh and has a long history of issuing bomb threats across the country. In the latest incident, he used the mobile phone of another inmate, Kannan Guruswamy from Munnar, to send the threatening emails to the Bhatkal police.

Sharma had reportedly met Kannan while lodged in Munnar jail. Pretending that he wanted to make a personal call to his wife, Sharma borrowed Kannan's phone and instead sent two emails to the Bhatkal Police Station on the morning of the incident. The first email was sent at 7:22 am with a brief message stating, "We have planted a bomb in the town." The second mail, sent a minute later at 7:23 am, read, "It will blow off in 24 hours."

Police traced the mobile number used to send the mail to Kannan, who was initially taken into custody for questioning. During interrogation, Kannan revealed that Sharma had borrowed his phone during their time in jail. Further investigation confirmed that Jatin Sharma is presently in Mysuru prison for a similar offence where he had sent a bomb threat to Nazarbad Police Station in Mysuru.

“Sharma, who once worked in a hotel in Bhatkal, holds a personal grudge against the police after his arrest and conviction in a case filed by the Noida police. He is acting out of hatred and is involved in at least 20 such cases across the country,” SP Narayan told reporters.

The SP added that Sharma’s method involves using or stealing someone else’s phone to send out bomb threats, ensuring the actual owner is unaware. “In this case too, the person whose phone was used had no knowledge of the email being sent,” he said.

The Munnar police have already obtained a body warrant for Sharma. He is expected to be brought to Karwar soon for further questioning in connection with the Bhatkal case.