By Kang Shin-who
Staff Reporter
Police said Friday they had arrested a Pakistani man who claimed to be member of the Taliban Islamic militant group on charges of using a fake passport.
The 31-year-old suspect was detained Thursday at his home in Daegu. The man allegedly used the passport of another Pakistani to come into or leave South Korea 17times since August 2003, according to the police.
The suspect, however, has denied having any link to the terrorist group, investigators said.
The Pakistani Embassy in Seoul was unavailable for comment.
The Pakistani is suspected of having gathered information on key military installations, including U.S. military posts, apparently to prepare a terror attack during the G-20 Summit scheduled for November in Seoul.
This is the first time that a terrorist suspect has been arrested here as the country has only encountered drug trafficking groups linked to the Taliban attempting to raise cash for the insurgents so far.
Investigators speculate that this case was quite different, alleging the suspect appeared to be trying to form a ``Korea-based’’ terrorist network.
During multiple visits to and from Korea, he allegedly took pictures of the U.S. Forces Korea headquarters in Seoul and collected information on military facilities, which he handed over to the Taliban leadership.
The suspect first came to Seoul in 2001 using a false passport, but was deported in June 2003 by the Immigration Service, according to authorities.
However, he returned within two months, using a new name and passport, with his wife, two sons and four daughters.
Since then, he had acted as an Imam at the Muslim mosque here and a community leader.
They added that he is suspected of having trained some 30 students to participate in Jihad (struggle) and Shahadat (martyrdom) at the behest of the Taliban.
He was placed under police surveillance from February last year when he was thought to be involved in smuggling chemicals out of Seoul to Pakistan. At that time, he denied any involvement with Taliban insurgents and was released after police failed to secure sufficient evidence.
To deal with possible security threats to the G-20 Summit, the National Police Agency has set up a 109-member special task force. The international event will see leaders from the world’s 20 major economies gathered here to discuss issues vital to the global economic recovery.
kswho@koreatimes.co.kr
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