Who is Matthew VanDyke, alleged CIA mercenary arrested by NIA?

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) had a major breakthrough on March 13 when it arrested seven foreign nationals, six Ukrainians and one American for allegedly providing terrorist training to insurgent groups in Myanmar to carry out attacks in northeast India. The NIA received 11-day custody of the accused for illegal entry, weapons and drone training, and importing drones from Europe. Notably, while the NIA is looking into a larger conspiracy, one name that stands out is Matthew VanDyke or Matthew Aaron Van Dyke, a former US soldier.

Who is Matthew VanDyke?

Before you know about Matthew, you will be surprised to know that he was first held in Libya and was later spotted on the Syrian frontline. He had claimed that he was in Aleppo to film a documentary alongside the Syrian rebel army. He also claimed that he was advising the rebels on weaponry based on his experience in Libya, reported The Guardian.

According to the report, VanDyke was captured and imprisoned in Libya and managed to escape six months later when Tripoli was liberated by rebels. Now, after having taken up weapon in Libya and Syria, he landed in India and sneaked to Myanmar to train insurgents, claims the NIA.

Now, according to a site IndieWire, VanDyke joined the fight against ISIS even before the US army got involved in the ground operations. Notably, Dyke was branded as a terrorist by the former Assad regime in Syria. He has also formed a company named The Sons of Liberty International, a security organization operating in Iraqi Kurdistan to train anti-ISIS fighters and recruit more fighters.

VanDyke hails from Baltimore, Maryland and first travelled to the Middle East before getting involved with Iraqi, Kurdish, Syrian fighters and ran a covert training program for rebel groups.

According to NewsWeek report, VanDyke, a former US prisoner of war in Libya, also trained Ukrainians to fight against Russia in 2022. This establishes his links to Ukrainian groups, as he was arrested along with six Ukrainians. Many social media users alleged that he is a CIA mercenary working against India on behalf of the United States.

How He Landed in India and Why?

As per the initial investigation, it appears that he was sent by someone to foment unrest in the northeast by training insurgent armed groups. The threat was to India’s sovereignty and internal security. While VanDyke was detained by the Bureau of Immigration at Kolkata airport, three Ukrainians each were detained at airports in Lucknow and Delhi. There are high possibility that all seven are linked somehow.

According to the NIA documents, those arrested are US national Matthew Aaron Van Dyke and Ukrainian citizens Hurba Petro, Slyviak Taras, Ivan Sukmanovskyi, Stefankiv Marian, Honcharuk Maksim, and Kaminskyi Viktor. They all entered India on a tourist visas and then reached Guwahati. From there, they travelled to Mizoram and entered the Restricted Area Permit (RAP), also known as Protected Area Permit (PAP) without permission, showed NIA documents. Then they iilegally crossed the border entering Myanmar to carry out a ‘pre-scheduled training for Myanmar-based Ethnic Armed Groups (EAGs)’.

Notably, as per the NIA, the EAGs have been supporting insurgent groups in India by training them in ‘drone warfare, drone operations, assembly and jamming technology etc’.

Investigation Reveals Shocking Details

The NIA investigation has lifted the curtain on a sinister plan against India. According to an Indian Express report, evidence suggests that multiple drone consignments were brought from Europe and were delivered by the accused persons to individuals and groups in Mizoram.

The NIA told the court that, during interrogation, the accused admitted they were in “direct contact with unknown terrorists carrying AK-47 rifles” and had assisted them in their illegal activities. The agency further alleged that the accused had conducted multiple training sessions for EAGs and were also involved in illegally importing large consignments of drones from Europe to Myanmar via India for use by the EAGs.