New Delhi: India’s National Investigation Agency (NIA) has arrested American citizen Matthew VanDyke along with six Ukrainian nationals for alleged involvement in cross-border terrorism activities. The arrests, made around March 13, occurred at airports in Kolkata, Lucknow, and Delhi, targeting individuals who entered India on tourist visas.
The suspects lacked required Restricted Area Permits (RAP) or Protected Area Permits (PAP) to enter Mizoram, a restricted border state. From there, they illegally crossed into Myanmar to provide training to ethnic armed groups (EAGs) on drone warfare, operations, assembly, and jamming technologies aimed at Myanmar’s junta.
These EAGs reportedly support Indian insurgent groups (IIGs) threatening Northeast India’s security. The NIA also accuses the group of smuggling large drone shipments from Europe through India into Myanmar for these militants.
Matthew VanDyke, a former soldier, war correspondent, and businessman, runs the Sons of Liberty International (SOLI), a non-profit offering security training to groups fighting terrorism and insurgencies. He has participated as a mercenary in global conflicts.
A Delhi court remanded all seven to NIA custody until March 27 under Section 18 of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), which covers terrorist conspiracy and abetment.
