How Kerala's Wayanad-Born Man's Name Came Up In Lebanon Pager Blast Probe
How pager blasts in Lebanon – which was widely attributed to the doing of Israel – remain unanswered? The investigation went rounds from Taiwan to Hungary, as images of the broken remains of the pagers showed the logo of a small Taiwanese electronics manufacturer, Gold Apollo. The blasts killed 37, and injured more than 2000.
Now, name of an Indian emigrant in Norway has popped up in the investigation into blasts which were aimed at Hezbollah operatives. Now a Norwegian citizen, Rinson Jose migrated to the country from Wayanad in Kerala. Reportedly, a company owned by the 37-year-old in Bulgaria was involved in the supply of the pagers to the militant group.
In a statement, the Taiwanese company said that the pager model used in the blast, AR-924, was actually manufactured and sold by BAC Consulting KFT, a company based in Hungary’s Budapest, which had been authorised to use its trademark.
Two days after the pagers exploded, Bulgarian state security agency DANS said it was coordinating with the country’s interior ministry and probing the role of a company, named to be Norta Global Ltd. The company, which was registered in Sofia in 2022, was owned by a Norwegian, Rinson Jose.
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A day later, on Friday, DANS said the pagers used in the blasts in Lebanon were not imported, exported or manufactured in Bulgaria.
“Following verifications, it has been indisputably established that no communication equipment corresponding to those that exploded on September 17 was imported, exported or manufactured in Bulgaria”, said the agency as quoted by news agency AFP.
The statement also added that the company and its owner had “not carried out any transactions linked to the sale or purchase of the merchandise” or that “fall under laws on terrorism financing”.
Police in Norway’s Oslo said they have opened a “preliminary investigation into the information that has emerged”.
According news agency IANS, Jose went to Norway to pursue higher studies a few years ago. He briefly worked in London before going back to Oslo.
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As per his LinkedIn page, he has also worked for nearly five years in digital customer support for Norwegian press group DN Media, said AFP. DN Media told newspaper Verdens Gang that he has been on an overseas work trip since Tuesday and that they have not been able to reach him.
In 2016 he founded NortaLink, a company described as “an innovative consulting, outsourcing, recruitment and technology services company”.
Relatives said that Jose is settled with his wife in Oslo and has a twin brother based in London. “We speak daily over the phone. However, for the last three days, we have had no contact with Jose. He is a straightforward person and we trust him fully. He will not be part of any wrongdoing. He may have been trapped in these blasts,” Thankachen, a relative of the 37-year-old, told the IANS. He added that they have not been able to contact Jose’s wife either.
