NIA arrests key conspirator in Bengaluru's Rameshwaram Cafe blast case
New Delhi, Mar 28: In a major breakthrough, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) has arrested a key conspirator in Bengaluru's Rameshwaram Cafe blast case, according to an official statement issued on Thursday.
Muzammil Shareef was picked up on Wednesday and placed in custody as a co-conspirator after NIA teams cracked down at 18 locations, including 12 in Karnataka, five in Tamil Nadu and one in Uttar Pradesh, it said.
The NIA, which took over the case on March 3, had earlier identified the main accused, Mussavir Shazeeb Hussain, who had carried out the blast.
It had also identified another conspirator, Abdul Matheen Taha, who is also wanted by the agency in other cases, the statement said.
"Both the men are on the run," it added.
NIA investigations have revealed that Muzammil Shareef had extended logistic support to the other two identified accused in the case, involving an IED explosion at the cafe located at ITPL Road, Brookefield, Bengaluru, on March 1.
Several customers and hotel staff members were injured, some of them grievously, in the blast, which caused extensive damage to the property.
"Raids were conducted today at the houses of all these three accused as well as the residential premises and shops of other suspects," the statement said.
Various digital devices were seized during the searches, along with cash, it added.
Efforts are on to nab the absconding accused and unearth the larger conspiracy behind the blast, the NIA said.
NIA Arrests 1 in Rameshwaram Cafe Blast Conspiracy After Massive Multi-State Raids pic.twitter.com/QI4ZpvBpQV
— NIA India (@NIA_India) March 28, 2024
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Gujarat man held for impersonating govt official, duping people with forged letters
Ahmedabad (PTI): The Ahmedabad police have arrested a 29-year-old man who allegedly posed as a senior revenue official and used fake letters claiming to be from various government departments to cheat people, an official said on Sunday.
Mehul Shah, an engineer who manages two schools at Vankaner in Gujarat’s Morbi district, is accused of making lakhs of rupees with bogus documents and false claims, said inspector (crime branch) JK Makwana.
Shah had forged an appointment letter from the Ahmedabad district education officer (DEO) to offer a computer operator’s job in a government office to a complainant’s son. He also introduced himself as a trustee of a school and did not pay a man Rs 7 lakh due to him over the painting of a school building, the official said.
“Despite holding no official position in the state or central government, he used fake work permits and NOCs to cheat people of lakhs of rupees,” the police official said.
One complainant alleged that Shah identified himself as a top revenue department official and produced a fake letter from the chairman of the “department of science and research development” to make him install a siren and curtain in a hired vehicle but did not pay for the job, he said.
Bogus letters claiming to be from the Union Ministry of Home Affairs and the Ahmedabad DEO were used by the accused to cheat the complainants, the police official said.
Police have recovered from his possession fake identity cards and letters with headings like “bharat gaurav ratna shri samman council”, “chairman of department of science and research development”, “health and family welfare department”, and “road and building department”.
“The FIR is based on complaints by three victims. We appeal to the people to come forward and submit their complaints if they have been cheated by Shah in any way,” Makwana said.
