The Rouse Avenue Court in New Delhi cleared the path for Matthew Aaron van Dyke to board a flight back to the United States on Friday, October 23. The order came after the National Investigation Agency (NIA) counsel explicitly stated the agency had no objection to the accused leaving the country. Van Dyke, a US national at the center of a sprawling probe into alleged terror funding and drone training, can now stay abroad until February 24.
The legal maneuvering was precise. The NIA agreed to allow the accused to appear at the next hearing date through video conferencing, provided his legal counsel remained physically present in the courtroom. The court also appointed a Legal Aid Counsel for Van Dyke, a procedural step that signals the case is entering a phase where physical presence in India is no longer mandatory for the suspect. Van Dyke himself told Times Now he was ready to cooperate, noting he had returned to India that morning and was prepared to stay if the matter dragged on, though he is now representing himself.
This relief follows a significant shift in the case’s trajectory in September. Special Judge Prashant Sharma had already granted Van Dyke default bail, directing him not to leave Delhi and to cooperate with the probe. The bail was secured on a personal bond of ₹1 lakh and a surety of the same amount. That earlier order kept him tethered to the capital, but the latest ruling unties that knot, allowing him to cross the ocean while the investigation continues.
The chargesheet filed by the NIA against Van Dyke and six Ukrainian citizens outlines a specific pattern of alleged misconduct. The agency accused the group of entering India in December 2025 on tourist visas without obtaining the mandatory Protected Area Permit (PAP) for Mizoram. According to the filings, the accused then crossed the Myanmar border to reach Victoria Camp, where they allegedly imparted drone training to ethnic armed groups (EAGs). The NIA invoked Sections 21 and 23 of the Immigration (Amendment) Act, 2006, but notably chose not to invoke the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) at this stage, stating more time was required to verify the facts regarding potential terror offenses.
The next critical date is February 24. Van Dyke must be back in India by then to appear before the court via video link. The NIA will continue its investigation into the alleged wide-ranging conspiracy involving the provision of assistance to armed groups in both India and Myanmar, but for now, the accused will be watching the proceedings from American soil.