BHOPAL: NIA has set up a temporary office in Bhopal and launched a joint hunt for three – Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) terrorists. Officers are working with MPATS, said sources.
MPATS and central intel agencies had arrested four alleged tech-savvy jihadists of banned terrorist outfit from Bhopal, last month; two others were arrested for harbouring them. During interrogation, the accused revealed their terror plans after which this case was transferred to NIA. Three of the key members are still at large. Officers also suspect that they must have crossed the Indian borders.
Those arrested earlier were identified as Fazhar Ali alias Mehmood, 32, Mohammad Aqeel alias Ahmed, 24, Zahooruddin alias Ibrahim, 28, and Fazhar Zainul Abdeen alias Akram Al Hasan. Three of them are Bangladeshi nationals and one is from Bihar. Huge cache of jihadist literatures, laptops and mobile phones were confiscated from their possession. They are being charged under various sections of Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) and Foreigners Act.
Two of them were arrested from a rented accommodation in the Aishbagh area of Bhopal – located a few metres from the police station. More arrests were made from the Karond area. Initial investigations suggest that the terror accused were in touch with their handlers, mostly based in Bangladesh, through social media. Their call records showed calls received and made to numbers in foreign countries, apart from app they were using to communicate with leaders, said police.
