LTTE lynchpin KP free

Corrupt Thai military generals have interfered and released the LTTE chief of procurement, Shanmugam Kumaran Tharmalingham alias Kumaran Pathmanathan (KP), from Thai custody. A Thai source revealed that LTTE agents in Thailand had bribed the military generals US$ 1 million.
KP was arrested by a junior officer of the Thai police on September 10, this year. A military general was shocked to hear of the arrest and informed the Thai police not to inform the media but, the officer responsible for the arrest, had already informed a Bangkok Post journalist.


KP, resident in Thailand, has a good relationship with the corrupt military generals, because he is involved in arms dealing.


In 2002, when an LTTE delegation met their Sri Lankan counterparts in Bangkok for peace talks, LTTE delegates, in the company of a senior Thai military commander, and escorted by soldiers, met KP in a tea boutique in a jungle hideout in the northeast.

The meeting was long where operational issues were discussed. The Thai military had provided security throughout the four-hour meeting with KP. At the end of the meeting, the LTTE delegation returned to Bangkok in military vehicles.KP, operates under various aliases, with over 17 passports. He has recently been the target of a manhunt from Johannesburg to Singapore and from Rangoon to Bangkok.

According to intelligence reports, he has bank accounts in London, Frankfurt Denmark, Athens and Australia.KP is one of LTTE supremo Prabakaran's closest associates and also of his wife Madiwadini.A Profile of KP: The Untold StoryKP was born on April 6, 1955, in Myliyddy near Kankesanthurai, and resided at 130, KKS Road, Jaffna.

He is, reportedly, a relative of Prabhakaran. His original name is Dharmaligam. He is an Arts graduate from Jaffna University. He is not married.KP holds one Sri Lankan passport No. J-803500 and a Sri Lankan Identity Card No. 550971231 V. He holds two Indian passports in the name of Dharmalingam Shanmugham Kumaran, No. E- 432432, issued from London on 9.8.89, and in the name of Selvaraja Padmanabhan, No. E-277582."It is reported that, in 1981, KP robbed the Peoples Bank in Tirunelveli (Jaffna). KP has been active in India since 1983. In 1983, he was arrested for smuggling gold worth Rs 40 lakhs from Singapore to Bombay, in collusion with Vakil Kandasamy.

He was then operating under the name of Kutti alias Padmanabhan. He was again arrested for smuggling in 1984. From 1983 onwards, KP has been operating from Madras in close association with Raghu alias Gundappa. Along with Capt Piraisoodi alias Capt David, a merchant navy captain, they floated a company in Singapore called Arasu Maritime Pvt Ltd. KP provided the funds to start the company, US$ 25,000, which was the paid-up capital. In October 1984, a ship, the MV Cholan, originally owned by a Chinese company and registered in Panama, was purchased.

This ship was operating between Singapore, Penang, Sri Lanka, Vizag and Nagapattinam, carrying outboard engines, communication equipment and, in all probability, armaments. During the period 1986-88, a new shipping company was floated in Singapore called "Plymouth Shipping Company" in partnership with Capt Vijaykumar.

This ship too was used exclusively to supply the LTTE.""In 1989, in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, KP floated a company "Vikram Holdings Pvt Ltd" in partnership with three Malaysians of Sri Lankan origin. Capt Piraisoodi was also one of the directors of this company. During the same period, KP opened another company - "Point Pedro Shipping"- registered in Panama.

This company operated two ships "Sun Bird" and "Elicia", flying the flag of Honduras and extensively used in transporting arms and ordnance from European countries. "Sun Bird", flying the flag of Cyprus, was caught in Penang in December 1990, with boat engines, communication equipments, etc, with the case pending in Malaysia. Another ship called the "Golden Bird" is reportedly highly active. KP financed all the above. Some other ships under KP's control are "Amazon" and "Nifly"."Two close associates of KP in India were Eason Singaraya and Kumar. Eason was arrested in January 1991, by local police and is presently in Vellore jail.

Vakil Kandaswamy was another close associate of KP who he used for smuggling gold from Singapore and to send LTTE members abroad on forged travel papers."During November 1990, Eason and Kandaswamy had spoken to K P over the telephone from Adayar STD booth. K P was at that time reported to be at Kuala Lumpur. During the conversation with Kandaswamy, K P had indicated that LTTE was going to launch a major operation in India to harm the Indian leadership."During Nov-Dec '90, KP was in Cyprus. He was in touch with Kumar, who along with Kader, was staying at 28th Lodge, Room No 5, Sarangoon, Singapore. A consignment of arms was loaded on o "Golden Bird" by KP. Kader joined KP in Cyprus. He embarked on the "Golden Bird" to the Bay of Bengal in Feb '91.

The armed cargo was unloaded and sent to Jaffna in four installments, during March 1991. "Golden Bird" belonged to "Henseatic" registered with the Orient Shipping in Germany. Kader has since been apprehended by the Indian Navy, along with nine others from the vessel "Tong Nova", and is now in the custody of the 'Q' Branch of Tamilnadu police.It is also learnt that in June '91 KP visited Singapore and went to the Thai-Cambodia border in the third week of July, where he negotiated arms purchases from the KPNLF. During the period 1984-85, while KP was in India, there is evidence of large-scale purchases of highly sophisticated weapons by him. During the searches made at the house of Radhakrishnan alias Radha at Chingelput, some files titled "KP-Deal List", were seized.

These files indicate bulk purchases of gun boats, recoilless rifles, 106mm, torpedoes, RPG antitank and anti-personnel mines, Israeli grenades, 7362mm NATO rifles, ammunition, plastic explosives, sub-machine guns, night vision devices, G3, N16, M60 rifles, Czech pistols 9mm and large quantities of mortar and explosive substances and related equipment. The documents disclose the price at which these arms are available in British Pound Sterling and also contain certain unsigned requirements apparently sent to the arms dealers for procurement.


The above details would necessarily imply management of huge finances for floating of companies, purchase of ships, arms etc. However, there is no direct evidence to indicate sources of finance, except for some isolated incidents of gold smuggling, which by themselves, appear inadequate to finance the above requirements.In this context, information furnished by the Criminal Investigation Department of Sri Lankan Police is relevant.

This information relates to the links between drug trafficking and the Tamil terrorist organization.The report, inter alia, states that during the period 1984-86 a large number of Sri Lankans arrested in West Germany, Italy, France and Spain for drug smuggling were Tamils. Of the Sri Lankan arrested during this period, 84% were Tamils. Almost all the Tamils arrested were traveling on forged passports. On interrogation, they admitted that they were drug-trafficking for Tamil terrorists to fund arms purchases.During the period 1989-90, Sri Lankan Tamil drug traffickers arrested abroad were largely found to be operating from India. Recently, a Sri Lankan Tamil, Vamadevan alias Capt Kumar has been arrested by the Bombay Police for possession of heroin.During 1989-90, as many as 13 Sri Lankan Tamils, with definite LTTE links, were arrested for drug smuggling, by the Police Narcotics Bureau of Sri Lanka.

The Sri Lankan CID has concluded that large sums of money from drug-trafficking syndicates of the LTTE, are re-routed to south India, from where the money is disseminated abroad for arms purchases. They have also concluded that these syndicates procure their narcotics from India. Countries from where operations took placeIndia


In Madras, the KP department was functioning from the LTTE office, during 1983-84. Smuggling was arranged from here and funds from Tamils abroad were also collected in Madras. Associates of KP in Madras were (1) Raghu alias Gundappa (2) Eason Singaraya (3) Kumar (4) Vakil Kandaswamy and (5) Ranjith (Accountant).Kandaswamy, reportedly, owns a house at Regharpura, Karol Bagh, New Delhi, which was used by KP as a safe-house. However, during interrogation, Kandaswamy stated that a Lawrence was earlier staying in that house. He died subsequently. KP's contacts in New Delhi were the former immigration officer, Delhi Airport, Jagdish Yadav, presently working in the traffic police, Delhi, and residing at E17, Shankar Road, Karol Bagh, New Delhi. Yadav is also reportedly the owner of "Flying Travels" near Navrang Hotel, Pahar Ganj, New Delhi. KP in 1986 stayed at Navrang Hotel, Pahar Ganj. KP's other contacts in New Delhi were brother of Jagdish Yadav, Virendra Yadav, owner of "Cozy Travels", Ground Floor, Aeroflot Building, New Delhi, and immigration officers V.D. Gupta and Dahaiya. Dahaiya is said to be SHO, Greater Kailash. Other travel agencies used by KP were "VK Travels", near Imperial Cinema, Pahar Ganj, owned by V.K. Aggarwal and "Hind Travels", Karol Bagh owned by Arun Marwah.


Singapore (i) Captain Piraisoody, (ii) Prof of Mathematics, Rajendran, Singapore University, (related to KP and V. Prabhakaran), (iii) Devendran, (iv) Arasaratnam, (v) Mohammed Rial (gold smugglers between Singapore and Madras), are his associates. Shipping and Finance companies of KP operate from here..KP deals with the following agencies for procurement of equipment in Singapore:Inter Nave Agencies Pvt, Ltd 30-04, International Plaza, Anson Road Singapore. Blazer Electronics Company, Sim Lim Tower, Ground Floor, Rochore Road, Singapore (KP purchased telecommunication equipment and boat engines through a smuggler, Charles Fernando, from this shop in Nov-Dec '90).


Malaysia
(i) Loganathan, (ii) Dhanapalan and (iii) Karunanidhi (partners of Nikram Holdings, Kuala Lumpur) are his known associates in Malaysia, an important smuggling base for KP.KP's address in Malaysia - Tingkat 3, Block C8, Jalam/ Taman Tunku, Bukit, Tunku, Kuala Lumpur. He is also the director of "Vikram Holdings" Lot 592, 5th Floor, PO Box 469, Wisman Central, Jalam, Ampong, 50450, Kuala Lumpur.


Thailand
(i) S Mohan, c/o V Easwara & Co Ltd, P.O. Box 894, Park Nong PO, Bangkok, is a close friend of KP, with whom he stays while in Thailand. He was also managing "Aarasu Maritime Pvt Ltd, 0904, LKN Building, 135 Cecil Street, Bangkok.France KP is known to have extensively used the French port of Marseilles for transportation of arms through his various ships. He is reportedly a close associate of arms smuggler and international drug runner, Patrick Condier - a retired French army officer.


Switzerland
This country is used mainly for transfer of money through bank accounts and fund raising.


Belgium
The port of Antwerp is used both for purchase of arms as well as their transportation.Panama, Honduras and St Vincent Due to their liberal registration procedure, these countries have been used for registration of companies and ships by KP.KP is also known to be operating from Hong Kong, allegedly in touch with Mrs Shanmugaraja, c/o Kolpitiya, Hong Kong. (telephone No. 01-397801-21). United Kingdom Apart from Kittu, KP's contact in the UK is Kamalasingam alias Singam alias Kamala, a telecommunication engineer, who is a British national at c/o 44, 40th Lane, Wembley, Middlesex, HA 99, HA UK. He is.According to Capt Piraisoodi, KP is in close touch with one Dinesh based somewhere in Greece. His telephone No 30-1-418925 (Res) and 4-220226.Incidentally, according to intelligence reports, KP would be dispatching another consignment of arms and ammunition on the "Golden Bird", which will be taken by boats from the high seas in the Indian Ocean to Jaffna.

The seizure of the speedboat "Tong Nova" along with 10 crew members, including Capt Balan, off the Indian coast, shows that KP is still active in this area. Capt Balan is under interrogation.Comments of DIG Shri R.V Raju, on the note on KP, prepared by SP Shri Amit Verma, is fairly detailed. His extensive activities in arms procuring for the LTTE movement in Sri Lanka, have been traced. Now, his role in our case is to be examined.

The note states that it is KP who procures arms for the LTTE. He is, thus, the source of most of the arms and telecommunication equipment. The AK-47, pistols, grenades and wireless sets used in our case could have been procured by KP for LTTE. However, the only possible evidence connecting KP with our case to date is Vakil Kandaswamy's statement quoting the phone conversation in which KP refers to the action planned against the Indian leadership.KP, no doubt, is one of the most important members of the LTTE, performing perhaps the most vital role.

He would certainly have played a role in the decision making on the assassination, as he would have to take all possible steps to avoid any adverse effect of the crime on his activities, i.e., purchase and supply of arms etc, just like Trichy Santhan instructed Suresh Master for shifting the injured LTTE cadres, long before the assassination..KP, therefore, requires to be interrogated thoroughly. All possible evidence against him needs to be collected.

This could be done as follows:All particulars about him to be collected from Indian/Sri Lankan passports.Particulars of arrest of KP and Vakil Kandaswamy for smuggling gold in Bombay in 1983 to be collected from Bombay Police through Bombay Branch.Raghu alias Gundappa to be interrogated to get all possible particulars of KP, his friends, relatives etc. Kader in "Q" branch custody to be interrogated for (a) K P's knowledge of the assassination.

(b) Shipment of arms connected with assassination.Vamadevan alias Cap Kumar arrested by Bombay Police for drug trafficking, to be interrogated by sending an IO to see possible connection with KP.Pointers to trace source of sale of weapons, explosives and communication equipment used in our case, to be sent to explore their connection with KP.Accused like Santhan could be further examined to see if he had knowledge of KP's involvement in the decision making or connection with the arms used in our case.(R V Raju - DIG: SIT: Madras - 21.11.91)Comment of DIG Sh Srikumar on the note of S H Amit Verma on KP.

The note given by S H Amit Verma before we went to Sri Lanka is placed on files (S/7 to 10/c). As a result of our discussions with the various agencies, the facts gathered from Sri Lankan agencies are placed on file.

The photographs of M V Sunbird video record of M V Sunbird as well as KP's two apartments in Kuala Lumpur, the assets and liabilities statement and details of 22 a/cs of KP have been obtained from NIB. These are also placed on file (The video cassette is with Sh Manoharan).

The facts gathered conclusively establish the pre-eminence of K P as the chief procurer of arms and handler of funds for LTTE."On the basis of pointers raised by SP (AV) and DIG (RVR) the role of KP in the assassination case needs to be looked into closely to ascertain whether:Belt bomb was procured through him. AK 47, 9mm pistols seized from Sivarasan, was seized from him.Wireless sets used for communication between 91 and 95 stations were purchased by him.

The money spent by Sivarasan for the assassination is accounted for in KP's account.Whether ack-ack guns, SAM 8 missiles or other heavy armament purchase were effected by KP immediately after the assassination through funds channeled with his accounts at that time."What was he doing in India at the time of the assassination and why he hurriedly left India."1983 - Smuggling gold from Singapore to Bombay - arrested at Bombay; 1984 - gold smuggling, Madras; Dec '90 - Sun Bird seizure at Penang; Jan/Feb '91 - Easen & Kandaswamy's arrest; Aug '91 - Radha's house search; Oct '91 - Kandaswamy's arrest; Nov '91 - "Tong Nova" arrests.KP was given US$ 3 million with which he made arms purchases from Southern Lebanon.

In the light of this information, questioning of KP becomes imperative, if further insight into a greater conspiracy has to be had. At present, he is said to be moving in Australia/New Zealand. RAW may be requested to specially mount an operation to watch his movements and take action to nab him if he comes to India again. We could also take up a separate case for use of false passport against him.

The Tiger 'Diaspora'

Some of the major Incidents involving the LTTE outside Sri Lanka in 2007
In the recent past, there have been many instances in which cadres of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) or their front organizations have been arrested or sentenced to prison for a variety of subversive activity across the world. Some of the major incidents involving the LTTE outside Sri Lanka include:


2007
October 21: Canadian Police uncovered a major scam where LTTE operatives tried entering the Caribbean using expertly forged western passports, with the eventual aim of infiltrating the US and Canada. Several key members of the LTTE were among the more than 100 people arrested with fraudulent travel documents in the Caribbean, Senior Liaison Officer for the Caribbean, Royal Canadian Mounted Police, Jeff Johnston, told the Barbados-based Sunday Sun. Concerns among security agencies have heightened as a result of identifying a highly sophisticated fraudulent passport ring operating out of Guyana. He said, "Not only are they producing fraudulent regional/Caribbean passports, but also Canadian, US and British documents. Those identified included people believed to be associated with the LTTE who were trying to make their way to Canada, to raise funds for arms purchases."


October 9: The Victorian government in Australia, has reportedly given thousands of dollars to an organization accused of being a front of the LTTE. The Government awarded US$ 2,000, in two separate grants, to the Eelam Tamil Association of Victoria, to fund a dinner dance and to help with administrative expenses.


September 25: French Police arrested Ranjan, a second layer LTTE leader, who succeeded Parithi alias Nadarajah Mathienthiran, who was arrested on April 1 and in custody since then. He was arrested along with the Vennila gang members in the suburb of Paris. The report added that Ravi Manickam alias Oothai Ravi, the leader of the Vennila group and the key man entrusted by the LTTE to take care of the anti-LTTE Tamil groups in France, was also arrested. Ravi is suspected of a number of mysterious murders and abduction of members of the Tamil Diaspora in France.


September 24: The movement of two suspected LTTE cadres from Canada to the USA, during a recent private visit to America by the Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapakse, reportedly sparked off a quick reaction from the US Federal Agencies. The FBI on receiving information of the movement of LTTE operatives, swiftly tracked down Rajapakse to provide him with security.


September 13: Three persons, Aruran Vinayagamoorthy, Sivarajah Yathavan, and Arumugam Rajeevan, were charged for using Tamil Coordinating Committee in Melbourne, Australia, to raise funds for the LTTE. They reportedly appeared for the start of their committal hearing at Melbourne Magistrates' Court. Mark Dean S.C., the Commonwealth prosecutor, told court that US$ 1.9 million was deposited into a bank account for the Tamil Coordinating Committee, between 2001 and 2005. He alleged that US$ 1.2 million of that money was withdrawn in cash and used to purchase electronic equipment and other items for the LTTE. He said money provided to the LTTE was collected under the guise of donations for charitable projects and included money raised after the 2004 tsunami.


September 10: The LTTE's procurement and finance chief Shanmugan Kumaran Pathmanadan, alias KP, was arrested in Thailand. KP who has Thai citizenship, runs the global network of LTTE offices and its weapons procurement, logistics and money laundering operations. He has been on Interpol's Most Wanted list for a number of years. He has also been implicated in several assassinations of political leaders. KP, a smuggler of arms and narcotics, operating with bank accounts opened in London, Frankfurt, Denmark, Athens and Australia, was arrested in Bangkok.
September 2: LTTE cadres in France destroyed the flag pole and the national flag at the Sri Lanka Embassy and caused damage to the Embassy premises. The attack occurred hours before Foreign Minister Rohitha Bogollagama arrived in Paris at the start of an official visit to Europe.


August 29: A US Senate Foreign Relations Committee report revealed that the government of Eritrea is providing direct military assistance to the LTTE. The Committee came to this conclusion after a study during 2006 in 20 countries of Asia, Africa, Middle East and Latin America, on American military assistance to combat terrorism.


August 28: The Government launched an investigation into reports that LTTE cadres received 'police' training in the UK, after the 2002 cease-fire agreement (CFA). The probe was ordered after revelations by an LTTE cadre arrested at a police roadblock in Trincomalee. The suspect, Kalimuttu Vinodkumar (29), told police that he was among 12 LTTE cadres sent on a three-month training programme to Northern Ireland, shortly after the CFA was signed. The course had been conducted by foreign instructors, with the help of Tamil translators.


August 22: Tamil broadcasters in Australia are reportedly glorifying LTTE chief Velupillai Prabhakaran and are also raising funds. Often, the radio stations in Melbourne and Sydney are open to the outfit's leaders in the Wanni, who come online regularly, to appeal for funds, by glorifying the LTTE. These stations have a free run because the broadcasts are in Tamil and there is no one to monitor the daily pro-LTTE propaganda. In addition to raising funds and glorifying terrorism, the broadcasters hint at veiled threats to those who do not toe the LTTE line. Some of the leading radio stations are 3ZZZ in Melbourne, Inpath Tamil Vanoli, 24-hours radio in Sydney, Australian Tamil Broadcasting in Sydney and 3CR in Melbourne.


August 21: Three of the four Tamil suspects charged for the Oslo shootout on August 12, appeared in court. The fourth suspect is hospitalised after injuries sustained in the shootout. The Oslo court said that police could detain two of the suspects for four weeks and one suspect for two weeks.


August 16: A court in France has decided to extend the period of detention of all 14 LTTE suspects arrested on April 1, 2007, for a further period of four months till the first week of December 2007. The Sous-direction Anti Terroriste, the counter-terrorism agency in France, is in the process of framing charges against the suspects and according to the French law, if convicted, they could be sentenced for a maximum period of 10-years in jail.


August 15: The government is working on the arrest of the LTTE-linked Singapore based businessman Charles Gnanakone with the help of the Interpol, said Highways Minister Jeyaraj Fernandopulle. He said Gnanakone had openly admitted he had direct links with the LTTE.
August 14: Three top LTTE suspects under detention in Thailand for attempting to smuggle weapons into Sri Lanka in 2003, were deported to Sri Lanka. Sujit Gunapala (27), Sasiljaran Teverajah (27) and Satiepawan Arseawatap (34) were arrested from the Ranong province in Thailand on May 12, 2003, along with 10 Glock pistols and three HK Mark 23 pistols. They pleaded guilty and in November 2003 received a five-year jail sentence. Following their arrest, 14 Thai nationals, including eight security force personnel, were also detained. They were believed to be part of the same smuggling network.


August 12: During a violent clash in Oslo, Norway, between two rival factions of the LTTE, three LTTE cadres, 'Selika' Ranjan, Kannan and Kuhan, were injured. 'Selika' Ranjan later succumbed to his injuries. Clashes erupted between the supporters of Soosai, 'commander' of the Sea-Tigers (sea wing of the LTTE) and cadres from the intelligence wing of the outfit led by Pottu Amman, at REMA1000 supermarket in Kaldbakken and ended outside a house at Gardsveien 2. According to police estimates, there where 10 people involved in the incident.
July 25: Denying a Jane's Intelligence Review report that Cambodia was a source of weapons for the LTTE, the Cambodian Minister of Defence, Tea Banh, told Cambodian media that the report is entirely baseless and there is no authentic evidence to prove it. "The weapons belonging to the Cambodian government are all in the country and nobody will export them to foreign countries," a news report quoted the Minister as saying.
July 23: According to reports, the LTTE is still getting weapons smuggled from Cambodia. Cambodia's Interior ministry spokesman Khieu Sopheak acknowledged that some weapons might still be getting to the LTTE, but said any smuggling would be small-scale. "There could be some bad people involved.... We would like information to lead us to the offenders," he said, and added, "We are victims of weapons, so, we don't want people in other countries to suffer the same crisis."


July 18: The London-based Jane's Intelligence Review said the LTTE has not only created one of the most sophisticated insurgencies in the world but also has an annual 'profit margin' of US$ 200 to US$ 300 million. The report details two overarching financial and procurement bodies that provide the main source of LTTE money, manpower and weapons: the Aiyanna Group and the Office of Overseas Purchases (nicknamed the KP Department). As per Jane's, the Aiyanna Group functions as the group's intelligence and operations body, likely to be responsible for monitoring and ensuring the organisation's financial support and revenue streams, while the KP Department is most probably the procurement arm.

The LTTE creates and staffs some charitable organisations, projecting its influence through this front to raise money from Tamil communities and ultimately, convert the gains into arms, it reports. The report says the system works as an efficient way to move funds wherever investment or procurement opportunities arise, while utilising a charitable façade's tax-free status and legitimacy.


July 13: Protests have poured into the office of the Mayor of London, Ken Livingstone, urging him to ban the Trafalgar Square rally organised by the LTTE on July 14. The Mayor has given permission with restrictions to conduct a meeting organised by Harrow Councilor Daya Idaikadar.

The organisers have reportedly been told not try to propagate the programmes of the outfit and not to publicise the LTTE leader in the form of placards depicting his images.


July 10: An alleged member of the LTTE was arrested in Sydney (Australia) and charged with supporting a terrorist organization. Arumugam Rajeevan (41), has been charged with being a member of a terrorist organisation, providing support or resources to a terrorist outfit and making an asset available to a proscribed entity, the report said. The Australian Federal Police Commissioner Mick Keelty informed that Rajeevan was from Toongabbie in Sydney's West.


July 8: The UK has placed the LTTE as the second most dangerous terrorist group after al Qaeda. The UK already has put 44 groups on its list of terrorist organizations.


July 5: A British Court froze all bank accounts of London LTTE leader A.C. Shanthan alias Krishnatha Kumar and of his wife. Britain's Anti-Terrorism Unit had filed 28 charges against Shanthan, including extortion, operation of business enterprises, printing press and oil storages with ill-gotten wealth.

Those employed at these enterprises were exclusively LTTE members, it was revealed. The money earned by these business ventures as at July 2 is reportedly 4 billion sterling pounds.

The money thus earned had been utilised to purchase weapons from China and Israel to attack the Lankan Navy. Meanwhile, Goldan Lambert who was also arrested along with Shanthan, is under house arrest. Lambert was arrested on charges of kidnapping for ransom and extortion. Another female LTTE cadre, identified as Pakyadevi, is reported to be absconding.


June 30: British Law Enforcement Authorities have requested their Sri Lankan counterparts for details of five Sri Lankan youth charged with kidnapping a Tamil youth, identified as Bavananthan Thirunavukarasu, employed at a filling station in Kent. All five youths, allegedly involved in fund raising activities for the LTTE, are in remand custody. British Police said there are at least five other suspects at large, who have either played a role in the installation of sophisticated credit card cloning equipment and the abduction and kidnapping of the youth.


June 28: President, British Tamil Association, Arunachalam Chrishanthakumar alias Shanthan, the high-ranking agent of the LTTE, and head of finance, Goldan Lambert, were charged by Scotland Yard under the Terrorism Act 2000, with providing support to the LTTE, a proscribed organization in the UK. Shanthan of Norbury town in South London, faced five charges under Terrorism Act 2000. Lambert, of South Croydon, was charged with assisting in the management of the Hyde Park event, knowing it was for the purposes of supporting LTTE, a proscribed organisation.


June 21: One of the prominent LTTE leaders in London, A.C. Shanthan, was arrested by the British police under the Terrorism Act 2000. It is believed that he was detained in relation to an LTTE event held at Hyde Park in London on July 25, 2006.


June 11: French police have collected information regarding those LTTE supporters who traveled from France to Switzerland to participate in the protest march organised by the outfit on June 11. According to reports, police is closely monitoring activities of the outfit's supporters and is also preparing dossiers on LTTE supporters. The backlash against the outfit has been severe in France, as 50 Tamils who worked in the French airports were discontinued from their positions, once police concluded that they were active LTTE supporters.


June 4: The head of the US branch of the LTTE, Karunakaran Kandasamy, and four others pleaded not guilty to charges of assisting a foreign terrorist organization. Karunakaran is accused of heading the US branch of the LTTE and of funneling hundreds of thousands of dollars to fund its activities. Meanwhile, prosecutors said that the LTTE rely on sympathetic expatriates to raise money, get weapons and spread propaganda, adding, to coordinate these activities, the outfit has established branches in at least 12 countries, including an office in the New York borough of Queens.


June 1: The Singapore government assured that it will work closely with the Sri Lankan authorities to curb any possible use of Singaporean territory by the LTTE for its operations.


May 31: The LTTE is soon to be listed as a terrorist organisation in Australia. The move would rank the outfit alongside 19 other proscribed groups, including al Qaeda, Jemiyah Islamiah and the Pakistan-based LeT.
May 17: The Maldives coastguard opened fire on and sank a small vessel carrying suspected LTTE cadres, after a 12-hour standoff at sea in southern territorial waters of Maldives. According to reports, four of the nine-member crew were killed, four others were arrested and one surrendered. Reports said that the vessel, which started off as a deep sea fishing trawler, was hijacked by the LTTE to do some gunrunning for it. The boat was carrying guns and mortar bombs.


In a Quebec Court testimony that concluded on May 17, President, World Tamil Movement, Montreal office, Kathiravelupillai Sithamparanathan, an organization that is suspected of funding the LTTE, has testified that he considers the LTTE as freedom fighters and he supports their activities that would benefit the people. But he denied that his organization has sent money to the outfit. He, however, acknowledged attending a 2004 workshop in Sri Lanka, organized by the outfit. Asked about his view of LTTE chief Prabhakaran, he called him a freedom fighter who is organizing a struggle to win the rights of the people in Sri Lanka. Asked whether the World Tamil Movement supports the LTTE, he replied: "Actions that would benefit people, the right actions, yes."


May 16: A London Court was told that Senthuraj Thavapalasingham alias "Psycho" of Romford is the enforcer leading a gang of LTTE extortionists called "East Side Boys". Newham Council and Metropolitan Police told Stratford Magistrates Court that this gang has been working in Newham for two years. Chief Inspector Derrick Griffiths said, "To my knowledge there are around five Tamil gangs operating in London.

This is a gang of about 30 young men aged between 15 and 32 who are paid by an organization called the LTTE. They were paid to extort money from local businessmen and residents. Their victims were paying anywhere between Pounds 5,000 and 25,000 a year. In one case a businessman was paying 25,000 a year for four years."


May 10: Thirunavukarasu Varatharasa, a Sri Lankan citizen, pleaded guilty in a US court to conspiracy to provide material support to the LTTE and attempted export of arms and ammunition. According to the plea agreement, from April to September 29, 2006, Varatharasa conspired with Haji Subandi, Haniffa Osman and Erick Wotulo to export state-of-the-art firearms, machine guns and ammunition, surface to air missiles, night vision goggles and other military weapons to the LTTE.


National Post reported that the LTTE has been aggressively fundraising in Montreal using a sophisticated pre-authorized payment scheme and other methods to collect money from the city's 25,000-strong Tamil community.


May 6: A Hindu temple in south London, which reportedly raises nearly £500,000 each year, may have possible links to the LTTE in Sri Lanka. A BBC report said that the Armulmihu Hindu temple in Tooting "has had its assets frozen pending an investigation into alleged links with the UK banned Tamil Tigers."


May 5: A Singapore-based terrorism expert Rohan Gunaratna said that the LTTE has been procuring aircraft, arms, explosives and other technological devices from Australia for more than a decade.
May 1: Australian Police arrested two suspected LTTE cadres, Aruran Vinayagamoorthy (who had access to US$ 526,000 in two bank accounts between August 2001 and December 2005) and Sivarajah Yathavan, after raids in Sydney and Melbourne on the charges of providing material support and funneling money collected from donors in the garb of a tsunami charity to the outfit.


April 28: Six Sri Lankans, including the prime accused Satrubarajah Shanamugarajah alias Ruby, connected to the LTTE were convicted for organized crime in Norway. More than 5.3 million Norwegian Kroner have reportedly been stolen in Norway's largest credit card scam which has links to LTTE cells in Canada, England, Germany and Sweden.
April 25: The 'director' of LTTE in New York, Karunakaran Kandasamy, was arrested by the FBI in Queens, on charges of providing material support to a foreign terrorist organization.

The group headed by him, reportedly, operated in the US "drawing on America's financial resources and technological advances to further its war of terror in Sri Lanka and elsewhere. A FBI raid on Kandasamy's office in Queens has revealed evidence that he raised millions of dollars for the Tamil Tigers, through a front organization called the World Tamil Coordinating Committee."


April 8: French Police cancelled permission granted earlier to hold a protest rally in Paris condemning the arrest of LTTE cadres on April 1. The LTTE-controlled business chamber, youth organization and women front of the outfit were involved in organizing the proposed protest rally.
April 5: A 55-year old Singapore national, Haniffa Bin Osman, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to provide material support to the LTTE, said US Attorney for the District of Maryland. Three others, including, Haji Subandi and Erick Wotulo, both Indonesian citizens, pleaded guilty to attempting to illegally export arms for the outfit.


A Court in Paris remanded 15 LTTE cadres and released four of them out of a total 19 arrested on charges of illegal fund-raising.
April 1: The leader of the LTTE's French branch since 2003, Nadarajah Mathinthiran alias 'Parathi' and Thuraisamy Jeyamorthy alias 'Jeya', who are in charge of money collection in France, were among 17 LTTE suspects arrested. During 2006, the LTTE reportedly collected more than six million euros, where each Tamil family was forced to pay 2000 euros per year and shopkeepers were made to pay 6000 euros.


March 25: LTTE reportedly supplied forged passports to Ramzi Yousef who bombed the World Trade Center, counter terrorism expert Aaron Mannes said.


March 20: Falk Rovik, chief spokesperson of the Norwegians against Terrorism, said in Toronto that the LTTE have stolen hundreds of Norwegian passports and sold them to al Qaeda to earn money.
March 8: Haji Subandi, an international arms dealer from Indonesia, pleaded guilty in a federal court in Guam in USA, to conspiring to export guns, surface-to-air missiles and other military hardware to LTTE.


January 30: Interpol Headquarters in France, issued a worldwide arrest warrant for LTTE Sea Tiger leader, Thillayampalam Sivanesan alias Soosai, identifying him as a fugitive wanted for prosecution consequent to the facts forwarded by the Central Investigation Department to Court.


January 19: Police in the Tamil Nadu capital of Chennai, arrested G. Elango, an LTTE agent carrying a British passport, along with 28 ATM cards. Elango illegally withdrew over INR 30 lakhs from the ATMs and later sent it to the UK, through unauthorized channels. Elango, hailing from Middlesex, is reportedly a shareholder in 'Thamilini' -- a cash and carry grocery shops chain operated by the LTTE in UK.