Mangaluru Blast Accused Inspired By ISIS, Explosives Found At Home: Cops

The accused in the Mangaluru autorickshaw blast was “inspired by ISIS terror group” and used dark web to contact his handlers, the police said today, claiming a big breakthrough in the case. Karnataka top cop Alok Kumar said Shareeq worked under multiple handlers, one of them from Al Hind, a terror outfit influenced by ISIS.

“Shareeq’s immediate handler was Arafat Ali, an accused in two cases. He was in touch with Mussavir Hussain who is an accused in Al-Hind module case. Abdul Matin Taha was one of the main handler of Shareeq. Another 2-3 handlers also worked with Shareeq but they are yet to be identified,” Mr Kumar said.

So far, the police have conducted searches at five locations across Karnataka, including his home in Mysuru where materials used to make bomb were seized, he said.

“Shareeq was driven by ISIS ideology and made bomb at his home. On September 19, Shareeq along with two other accomplices carried out a trial blast in a forest on the banks of a river in Shivamogga,” the police officer said.

The police arrested two his accomplices the next day but Shareeq managed to escape and took a house on rent with stolen Aadhaar card in Mysuru and continued to make bomb, the police added.

“We have formed five different teams and they’re working on it. Four locations in Thirthahalli town of Shivamogga district and one place in Mangaluru city were searched this morning. Yesterday two places were searched. So, we have searched seven places and seized some electronic devices,” the senior police officer said.

A man has been detained in Coimbatore for his alleged links with the main accused in the autorickshaw blast in coastal Karnataka’s Mangaluru Saturday. The police have confirmed the incident as “an act of terror” and is probing the incident along with central agencies. 

Surendran, Tamil Nadu police sources told NDTV, had once stayed with blast accused Shareeq at a dormitory and also gave him his Aadhaar card to procure a sim card.