US National Gets Default Bail in NIA Terror Conspiracy Case After Probe Deadline Lapses

A Delhi court on Friday granted default bail to Matthew Aaron Van Dyke, a United States national arrested in March by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in connection with an alleged cross-border conspiracy involving ethnic armed groups in Myanmar. Special Judge Prashant Sharma of the Rouse Avenue and Patiala House courts ruled that the accused was entitled to statutory release because the investigating agency failed to file a complete charge sheet covering scheduled terror offences within the mandatory 180-day window.

The case centres on allegations that Van Dyke and six Ukrainian nationals traveled to Mizoram without valid permits before crossing into Myanmar to impart drone-warfare training to insurgent factions. While the initial FIR was registered under Section 18 of the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA), the charge sheet submitted on September 8 invoked only Sections 21 and 23 of the Immigration and Foreigners Act.

During the proceedings, the defense counsel argued that the provisions invoked under the Immigration and Foreigners Act were compoundable at the level of the Foreigners Regional Registration Office (FRRO). The court observed that the investigating agency could not circumvent statutory timelines under Section 187(3) of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), formerly Section 167(2) of the Code of Criminal Procedure, by filing a piecemeal charge sheet merely to deny default bail.

Special Judge Sharma granted bail to Van Dyke on a personal bond of rupees one lakh with one surety of the like amount. The court mandated that he remain within Delhi during the proceedings, make himself accessible to the investigation officer whenever summoned, and listed the matter for charge sheet consideration on October 1.

The court further noted that the six Ukrainian nationals arrested alongside Van Dyke in March, identified as Kaminskyi Viktor, Hurba Petro, Slyviak Taras, Ivan Sukmanovskyi, Stefankiv Marian, and Honcharuk Maksim, were similarly entitled to default bail should they choose to file formal applications. These co-accused individuals had been detained following parallel arrests at airports in Delhi and Lucknow.

Special Public Prosecutor Rahul Tyagi, representing the NIA, informed the court that the investigation into the broader international conspiracy remains active. The agency maintained that a supplementary charge sheet could be filed at a later stage if sufficient evidence emerges to substantiate formal charges under the UAPA.