Revealed: How key clue at mobile repair shop in Kolkata led to Rameshwaram Cafe blast accused's arrest
The NIA recently scored a major breakthrough in its pursuit of justice following the Rameshwaram Cafe attack in Bengaluru, with the apprehension of two key suspects, Abdul Matheen Taha and Mussavir Hussain Shazib.
FollowThe National Investigation Agency (NIA) scored a major breakthrough in its pursuit of justice following the Rameshwaram Cafe attack in Bengaluru, with the apprehension of two key suspects, Abdul Matheen Taha and Mussavir Hussain Shazib.
The duo, believed to be involved in the heinous incident, was captured in a dramatic operation in Bengal's coastal town of Digha on Friday. Despite their attempts to elude authorities by frequently changing their phones, SIM cards, and IDs, a crucial clue left behind at a modest mobile repair shop in Kolkata's Chandni Chowk market ultimately led to their arrest.
The duo arrived in Kolkata on March 12 and checked into a hotel in Esplanade.
The pivotal breakthrough came when one of the suspects visited Micromagic Infotech in Chandni to address technical issues with his phone. Unaware of the shop owner's actions, who inserted "one of our own SIM cards" into the handset to diagnose the problem with the microphone, the suspects unwittingly revealed their location through the phone's IMEI number.
Abdul Rab, the shop owner, explained that when the man returned in the evening to retrieve the phone, he requested more time. The suspect returned the following day to collect the phone, but it remained unrepaired.Â
Subsequently, the NIA contacted Rab for information regarding the suspect's visit. "I told them whatever I could remember," he stated. Although the shop is equipped with CCTV cameras, there is no footage of the suspect's visits as the recordings are not stored for an extended period.
This vital information enabled investigators to trace Taha and Shazib to a hotel in Digha, where they were promptly apprehended in a meticulously coordinated operation conducted jointly by the NIA and the Bengal police.
It may be recalled that the first breakthrough in the case came after the agencies found the cap that the bomber was seen wearing in CCTV footages of the Rameshwaram Cafe blast. According to several reports, the cap was purchased from a store in Chennai. The duo is said to have stayed in a lodge in Chennai and kept changing their location after the blast.
Hailing from Thirthahalli in the Shivamogga district of Karnataka, both Shazib and Taha played significant roles in the tragic incident at the Rameshwaram Cafe. Shazib was responsible for planting the Improvised Explosive Device (IED) at the cafe, while Taha orchestrated the entire planning and execution of the blast.
Following their arrest in Bengal, both suspects were transported to Bengaluru, where a local court granted the custody of Taha and Shazib for a period of 10 days to the NIA. Last month, the NIA had also announced a reward of Rs 10 lakh each for those providing information of these two accused.
