Norway issues international search request for person linked to exploding pagers

Norwegian police have issued an international search request for a Norwegian-Indian man linked to the sale of pagers to the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah that exploded last week, they said on Thursday.

Rinson Jose, 39, disappeared while on a work trip to the United States last week. He is a founder of a Bulgarian company that was reportedly part of the pager supply chain.

“Yesterday, Sept. 25, the Oslo police district received a missing person report in connection with the pager case,” Oslo police said .

“A missing persons case has been opened, and we have sent out an international warrant for the person,” it added.

Jose declined to comment on the pagers when reached by phone last Wednesday, Sept. 18, and hung up when asked about the Bulgarian business. He did not return repeated calls and text messages.

Jose’s Norwegian employer, DN Media Group, said he left for a conference in Boston on Sept. 17, and the company has not been able to reach him since Sept. 18. He works at the group’s sales department.

In 2022, Jose founded Sofia-based company Norta Global Ltd, Bulgaria’s corporate registry shows.

Bulgaria has investigated the company’s role in supply of booby-trapped pagers, but has found no evidence that they were made or exported from the country.