Burdwan terror suspect arrested for links with Islamic State
6 July 2016 1:49 AM GMT
Twenty five-year-old Mosiruddin, who was detained from Burdwan railway station in Viswa Bharati Fast Passenger Monday night, was arrested on Tuesday evening following a marathon interrogation at Bhawani Bhavan by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) and officers of the National Investigation Agency (NIA). Two youth – Sk Kalu and Sk Amin – were also detained on suspicion of being associates with Musa.
Sources said that the arrest of Musa was a major breakthrough, as he had entered the state after almost three years to execute a terror attack. Musa – originally a resident of BDO Para at Labhpur in Birbhum – had been staying in Tiruppur in Tamil Nadu for the past few years. On Monday, he reached Howrah station and went to central Kolkata, where he bought a pipegun and a dagger. He again boarded the Viswa Bharati Fast Passenger from Howrah Station. He was about to get down from the train at Ahmedpur station, but was caught when the train reached Burdwan Station Monday evening.
Sources said that he was being followed by some officers of the NIA since the time he had boarded the train from Chennai. They were keeping a close watch on his movements and finally arrested him at Burdwan. He was interrogated overnight in the lockup of the Government Railway Police at Burdwan Station and brought to Bhawani Bhavan Tuesday morning. Police recovered the pipegun, dagger, an android phone, six SIM cards and two fake voter cards from the accused.
Sources in the CID said that four youth were about to receive Musa at Ahmedpur Station. The investigating officers suspect that they were also involved in terror activities and were the same persons with whom Musa had planned the terror attack in the state.
Preliminary investigation revealed that he had contacts with top IS leaders, including top recruiter Shafi Armar. Call records of his mobile phone revealed that he was in regular contact with some people in Syria and Afghanistan. He used to be in touch with Armar through social networking sites and web-chats.
Musa had moved to Tamil Nadu, after getting married a few years ago, for getting a job and had got involved with the terror module during his stay in south India. According to an officer of the CID, the NIA had come to know about Musa after the recent arrest of five persons, who were suspected to be IS activists, from Hyderabad. Investigating officers suspect that he was also given ‘the responsibility’ to organise the terror attack in West Bengal and was trying to motivate some youth from Birbhum and its neighbouring districts to form a module in the state.
It may be mentioned that in an interview published in the propaganda magazine of the IS, Dabiq, the senior IS leader from Bangladesh Shaykh Abu Ibrahim al-Hanif had said that Bangladesh has been chosen as the base of the IS in South Asia, as its geographic position is strategically important from where attacks in India and Myanmar could be coordinated. Hence, the investigating agencies are considering the arrest of Musa a major breakthrough and it would help them to nab the others who had connections with him and were involved in any ‘anti-national activities’.
Kin, neighbours shocked over Musa’s arrest
The arrest of Mosiruddin alias Musa, for his alleged involved with the Islamic State (IS) terror outfit has left his family members and residents of BDO Para at Labhpur in Birbhum shell shocked.
His family said they cannot even imagine in the wildest of their dreams that the level headed and studious Musa could have been involved in such activities. The 25-year-old Musa was born in a middle class family. He had passed his higher secondary examination from a Madrasa at Labhpur and then moved to the city for his graduation level studies.
His neighbours claimed that they had never seen anything suspicious in his behaviour. Instead, he was a cool, calm and composed youth. Most of the time, they claimed, he used to be engrossed in his studies. His mother Jakira Bibi and father Nasiruddin came to know about his arrest from their neighbours as they do not have a television set in their house. His mother couldn’t believe that her son was involved in terror activities. Musa had got married to a woman from a nearby village a few years ago after graduation and he soon left for south India.
He had settled in Tiruppur in Tamil Nadu with his wife, along with his two sons. This time he returned to West Bengal alone, leaving his wife and sons back in Tamil Nadu.
Neighbours recollected that he rarely used to visit his residence at Labhpur. The last time he came to meet his parents was three years ago. However, Musa had not given any prior information to his parents about his visit. It raised suspicion that while his parents were unaware of his visit, the four youth – arrested along with him – came to know about his visit. “Moreover, what was the purpose of asking them to come to Ahmedpur station to meet him,” said a CID officer involved in the case.
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