Man nabbed in Erode for 2013 Bengaluru blast

CHENNAI: The Central Crime Branch of the Bengaluru police has nabbed S K Mohammed Ali Khan alias Kutty from a hideout in Sathyamangalam in Erode district in connection with the 2013 bomb blast carried out by the banned Al Ummah group near the BJP office in Bengaluru.
The 45-year-old had procured explosives from Riaz Ur Rahman, a resident of Mysuru, who sold explosives to quarry owners to blast granite.Kutty got in touch with Police Fakruddin and Panna Ismail, two other accused in the case, and attended two of the seven conspiracy meetings held at Kichan Buhari's house. Kutty's vehicle was used to transport the explosives from Mysuru to Bengaluru.
Kutty was in jail for 12 years in Coimbatore before his release in 2010. Intelligence sources said that he was the prime accused in the explosion outside film director Mani Ratnam's house in 1998. Police said he was involved in four other blast cases in Tamil Nadu in 1998.
At least 16 people, including 11 policemen, were injured in the blast on April 17, 2013 near the busy Karnataka BJP office in a crowded residential area of Malleswaram, ahead of the Karnataka assembly elections. The bomb was strapped to a motorbike parked between a van and a car.
A chargesheet was filed in October 2013 against 15 accused. Basheer, 30, Kichan Buhari, 38, Sait Azgar Ali, 29, Rehamathulla, 34, Valayil Hakeem, 32, Syed Suleman, 24, Suleman, 31, Zulfikar Ali, 24, Mohammed Salim, 30, Panna Ismail, 38, Bilal Malik, 25, Fakruddin, 38, Pravai Basha, Jhone Asir, 35, Syed Ali, 29, Riaz Ur Rahman, 42, and Kutty are currently in judicial custody in the Parappana Agrahara prison in Bengaluru. Two months ago, Daniel Prakash, who also supplied explosive materials, was picked up from Tirunelveli. 18 of the 20 accused have been arrested and are serving jail terms.