The accused in the 2008 Bengaluru serial blasts case, Shoaib, 31, who was arrested by the Central Crime Branch at Thiruvananthapuram airport on Monday evening, is suspected to have played a key role in the procurement of explosives.
He was part of a team that identified locations to plant the bombs that fateful day in the city, claim senior officials.
“He has been taken into CCB custody and further interrogation on his role in the blasts and his later activities is on,” a senior CCB official said.
One person died and around 30 were injured after seven bombs went off across the city on July 25, 2008.
32 accused
The city police had filed a chargesheet against 32 accused in the case, including Abdul Nasser Madani. Shoaib was the thirty-second accused. He was 19 years old at the time. Police say he fled the country a few days after the blasts.
“Efforts to nab all the absconding accused in the case have been constantly on. With the inputs were received and help from Central agencies, we tracked down Shoaib. A Red Corner Notice was issued in October 2019, following which he was detained in Dubai by the local authorities. After a prolonged legal process, he was deported to his home State, Kerala, on Monday, where we arrested him,” said Sandeep Patil, Joint Commissioner (Crime).
Of the 32 named as accused in the case, 22 were arrested earlier. Four were killed in an encounter in Kashmir by the Central forces. With the arrest of Shoaib, five accused still remain elusive and efforts are on to track them down, sources said.
