US National appears before Delhi NIA court in Myanmar arms training case

US national Mathew VanDyke, who was allowed to return to his home country for a month, returned to India and appeared before a Delhi court on Friday. In Setember, a Delhi court allowed VanDyke and the six Ukrainian nationals to return to their respective countries on the condition that they would rejoin the investigation. The seven were arrested in March under stringent provisions of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), which the National Investigation Agency (NIA) subsequently dropped in its chargesheet filed in September.

Delhi: US citizen Matthew Aaron VanDyke, accused of allegedly imparting terror training to Myanmar-based ethnic armed groups, appeared before the Rouse Avenue Court after returning from the United States. The NIA court had recently granted default bail to VanDyke and six Ukrainian nationals. The Rouse Avenue Court will hear the chargesheet filed against the accused.

— IANS (@ians_india) October 23, 2026

VanDyke and six Ukrainians were picked up back in March for allegedly sneaking into Myanmar to train ethnic armed groups, with accusations that he helped with drone technology training.  While he was initially arrested in March under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), the case was later shifted to immigration-related offenses.In the chargesheet, the NIA charged the seven accused only under the Immigration and Foreigners Act, an offence that can be compounded. VanDyke paid the compounding fees for the alleged violations under the Act and was granted default bail by the court last month.
The six Ukrainians are Hurba Petro, Taras Slyviak, Ivan Sukmanovskyi, Marian Stefankiv, Maksim Honcharuk and Viktor Kaminskyi. According to the agency, the seven imparted training in drone warfare, drone operations, assembly and jamming technology to members of Myanmar-based ethnic armed groups, including the Chin National Front (CNF) and the Kachin Independence Army (KIA), over nearly three months. The NIA also alleged that VanDyke and the others received logistical support from CNF members and that the mission was financed through funds arranged by a commander of a Myanmar-based rebel group.