On the 19th of July, the Central Crime Branch (CCB) of Bengaluru Police arrested 5 terror suspects for planning to execute a large-scale terror attack within the city. The Intelligence Department jointly assisted the CCB in averting the major terror plot. The five accused were reportedly arrested from different areas of the city. They have been booked under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).
After the arrests, Bengaluru Police Commissioner, B Dayananda addressed the media and gave important details about the terror plot.
According to the CCB officials, the five accused have been identified as Sayed Suhel, Umar, Junaid, Mudasir, and Jahid. They were also accused in a 2017 murder case and were lodged in Parappana Agrahara Central Jail. The officials added that inside the jail the accused came in contact with terrorists and received training on weapons and handling explosives.
The CCB official said, “Central Crime Branch (CCB) has arrested 5 suspected terrorists. They have been identified as Syed Suhel, Umar, Janid, Mudasir, and Zahid. It is suspected that they had planned to carry out a blast in Bengaluru. All five were accused in a 2017 murder case and were in Parappana Agrahara Central Jail where they came in contact with the terrorists. CCB has also seized explosive materials.”
According to the media briefing, it was a 10-member terror module and five terror suspects are still at large. The Police have recovered a huge cache of weapons and bomb-making material in their possession. The Police also seized 12 mobiles phone for further investigation. As per reports, the accused confessed before the Police that they were planning bomb blasts in Bengaluru.
These arrested accused were previously involved in a murder case, and they came into contact with terrorists having links with Laskar-e-Taiba (LeT) in the Bengaluru Central jail. One terrorist T Nazeer, who was lodged in Bengaluru Central Jail, is said to be the mastermind of this plot. He was arrested in connection with the 2008 Bengaluru serial blast case.
Bengaluru Commissioner Dayananda stated that the serial blasts accused are linked to Pakistan-based terror outfit Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT).
While the five accused were in Bengaluru Central Jail, Nazeer radicalised and trained them in weapons and explosives. The CCB officials added that one of the accused, who is currently absconding, provided these weapons to those arrested to carry out certain subversive activities. Additionally, they received money through online payment portals.
The official added, “The terror mastermind is hiding outside India and has been identified as T Naseer. The arrested terror suspects have been taken to 15 days of police custody. During the interrogation, it has been found that the terror suspects received money from abroad through a UPI platform.”