Anti-Terror Agency Raids 11 Locations In 4 States In Bengaluru Cafe Blast Case

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Tuesday carried out multi-state raids as part of its efforts to uncover the entire conspiracy behind the Bengaluru's Rameshwaram Cafe blast and to identify other conspirators involved in "handling the accused from abroad".

In a coordinated action, NIA teams searched 11 locations in Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, and Andhra Pradesh in connection with the case, an official statement said.

Extensive searches were conducted at the premises linked with 11 suspects in the case, in which an improvised explosive device (IED) explosion at the cafe on ITPL Road, Brookefield in Bengaluru, Karnataka had left several customers and staff members injured, it said.

"The NIA on Tuesday cracked down on multiple locations in four states as part of its efforts to uncover the entire conspiracy behind the Rameshwaram Cafe blast case and to identify the other conspirators involved in handling the accused from abroad," said the statement issued by the probe agency.

The IED blast, which took place on March 1, had also caused massive damage to the property.

The 11 suspects whose premises were searched on Tuesday include individuals convicted in the 2012 Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) conspiracy case of Bengaluru and Hubli districts, the NIA said.

The targeted searches led to the seizure of various digital devices and documents, which the agency is examining exhaustively.

The NIA, which took over the Rameshwaram Cafe blast case on March 3, had on April 12 arrested two key accused -- mastermind Adbul Matheen Ahmed Taahaa and Mussavir Hussain Shazib (perpetrator of the attack) -- from their hideout in Kolkata, where they were staying under the assumed identities.

Both the accused are residents of Thirthahalli in Shivamogga district of Karnataka.

The two are allegedly the members of the Shivamogga-based Islamic State module, officials said.

Shariq, a member of the same module, had carried out a blast in Mangaluru on November 19, 2022, they said.

The officials said that Kumaraswamy Layout and Banashankari in Bengaluru were among the places that were raided.

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