First Picture Of Tahawwur Rana With US Marshals Goes Viral

Tahawwur Rana, a man accused of helping plan the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks, has been brought to India from the United States. Photos released by the US Justice Department show US Marshals handing him over to Indian officials on April 9 at a secure location. Between November 26 and 29, 2008, ten terrorists from the Pakistan-based group Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) attacked several places in Mumbai. Over 170 people were killed.

Rana is not accused of directly taking part in the attacks, but of helping in the planning. He is said to have used his immigration business in Chicago to help his friend David Headley (born Daood Gilani) enter India with fake documents. Headley had been trained by LeT in Pakistan. He visited India, took videos of possible targets, and shared information with the attackers.

After the attacks, Rana was caught on tape saying the victims “deserved it” and that the attackers should get Pakistan’s top military award, the Nishan-e-Haider. In 2009, Rana was arrested in the US for being part of another terror plot linked to the same group. In 2013, he was sentenced to 14 years in prison. Meanwhile, Headley turned into a government witness and was sentenced to 35 years.

India requested Rana’s extradition in 2020, but the process was delayed for almost five years. Rana’s lawyers said he was very sick and might die if sent to India. He said he had heart problems, kidney disease, Parkinson’s, possible cancer, and asthma. In February this year, he asked the US Supreme Court to stop his extradition, but the court said no. On April 9, he was finally handed over to Indian officials and flown to India the next day. He is now in the custody of the National Investigation Agency (NIA) for 18 days, while the investigation continues.