Headley had come into contact with US authorities after he was busted on a drug trafficking charge in 1998. Because he “sang like a canary” to authorities, he served a minor sentence. But this was used against him to have him work as an “agent”.
Suspicion is growing that for the next few years, Gilani worked as a “double” agent. It stems from many reasons, including intriguing ease with which Headley could move in and out of Pakistan. In post 9/11 world, a Pakistan-origin man making frequent trips to Pakistan would have been marked by US tracking agencies, particularly if he was a US national. The fact that Headley managed to have a free run in this dangerous region without setting off alarm bells has been found by many to be odd.
The explanation that Gilani changed names to make travel easier is also drawing skepticism:
They are not convinced by Headley’s explanation that identity switch helped him dodge surveillance. It is a common knowledge that in US agencies keep tons of data on drug offenders. A simple camouflage like change of name by a frequent flier to Pakistan and UAE could not have kept the over-cautious border and customs officials from putting out red flags. The ‘rogue agent’ school has been reinforced by FBI’s specific warning of the terror attack that Lashkar had planned on Mumbai in September 2008. That the FBI was bang on mark has been corroborated by Kasab who has said that the attack on Mumbai was planned for September, but had to be aborted. Besides the timing, what has also struck people here is the specificity in the FBI alert about targets. The warning mentioned hotels, especially Hotel Taj, among targets drawn by LeT.
It is suspected that he may have provided the jehadi squad of Lashkar with maps that helped them zero in on their targets with deadly precision on 26/11.
What may make the most sense: He wasn't working both sides at the same time, but switched, abandoning the DEA and FBI and they it wasn't until the Brits alerted them to Headley's activity that they figured it out and put him under surveillance.
What is also being discussed is the possibility that the “double agent” defected to the jehadi camp just afterwards. That is why the Americans could not sniff the 26/11 plot. Immediately afterwards, stung by the betrayal, they put Headley under surveillance leading to his arrest. That FBI which warned India of an imminent terror attack and helped unravel the conspiracy behind 26/11, has been cagey about giving Indian investigators access to Headley and Rana has also puzzled many.
It's also becoming likelier that Headley set up Rana.
Those who view Headley as an undercover US agent who went rogue, feel they also leaned on Tahawwur Hussain Rana, Headley’s accomplice, to plant the latter in LeT and HuJI. The choice of Rana was not random. He was like Headley, an alumnus of Hasan Abdal Cadet College and had, to boot, a track record of facilitating fake visas.
The question is, did Headley con an unsuspecting old acquaintance, or was Rana in on it too. Rana has a bail hearing in Chicago on December 2.
Here's more on Headley and the DEA:
