Third Suspect Nabbed in Air India Bombing

V A N C O U V ER, Canada, Oct. 30 -- — A third suspect has been arrested in the alleged Sikh terrorist conspiracy behind the 1985 bombing of Air India Flight 182, which left 329 dead.

Hardial Singh Johal, believed to be one of the key organizers of the plot,was arrested late Sunday in the Vancouver area by a team of officers fromthe Royal Canadian Mounted Police Air Disaster Task Force investigating theJune 23, 1985 bombing — the deadliest case of aviation sabotage in history.

Sources tell ABCNEWS at least four more suspects will likely be arrestedover the next few days as the roundup continues.

Johal, a Vancouver school janitor and a former president of the VancouverSikh Temple, was suspected since 1985 when his former telephone numberturned up on the tickets booked for two terrorists who checked in the bags.Witnesses have told the Royal Canadian Mounted Police they saw Johal, 54, atVancouver International Airport as the bag for Air India Flight 182 wasbeing checked in.

Johal is expected to be charged with numerous counts relating to theconspiracy.

Police are also expected to charge suspected bomb-maker Inderjit Singh Reyat, already imprisoned after a related bombing conviction, as soon as a legal complication is resolved — probably within the next few days, sources tell ABCNEWS.

The bomb, planted in a suitcase boarded in Vancouver the day before the disaster, ripped open the Boeing 747 as it cruised at 31,000 feet southwest of Ireland. One hour earlier, another bomb that also originated in Vancouver exploded prematurely at Tokyo’s Narita Airport, killing Japanese baggage handlers Hideo Asano and Hideharu Koda.

Authorities say the bag was supposed to blow up aboard Air India Flight 301, which was waiting to take off from Tokyo for Bangkok.

Wave of Arrests in 15-Year-Old Case

On Friday, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police scooped up Sikh priest Ajaib Singh Bagri, 53, from Kamloops, British Columbia, and Vancouver multimillionaire Sikh fundamentalist Ripudaman Singh Malik, 51, in the 15-year-old investigation into both incidents.