Coimbatore car blast: 3 arrested; suicide bomber had 'bayath' with ISIS, says NIA

The three accused arrested have been identified as Mohammed Thoufeek, Umar Faaruq alias K Srinavasan and Ferose Khan, an NIA spokesperson said on Wednesday.

New Delhi: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Wednesday arrested three people from different places in Tamil Nadu in connection with the Coimbatore card bomb blast case in which one suspected terrorist Jameesha Mubin was killed in front of Sangameswarar temple at Kottaimedu in Coimbatore on October 23.

The agency also said that Jameesha had taken a bayath(oath of allegiance) with the global terror group ISIS and planned to carry out a suicide attack. The three accused arrested have been identified as Mohammed Thoufeek, Umar Faaruq alias K Srinavasan and Ferose Khan.

"Following their arrest, it was revealed Umar Farooq and Feroz Khan were part of the conspiracy meetings attended by Jamesha Mubeen in Umar's residence at Coonor in Nilgiri district of Tamil Nadu. They also provided support to Jamesha Mubeen in the commission of the acts," a senior NIA official said.

The NIA said that Jamesha Mubeen who died in the car bomb explosion "after taking bayathto ISIS, planned to carry out a suicidal attack and cause extensive damage to symbols and monuments of a particular religious faith and with the intention to strike among the people."

The case was initially registered as FIR No. 207/2022 dated October 23 at Ukkadam police station in Coimbatore district. The case was again re-registered by NIA on October 27, 2022.

"The third accused arrested today (Mohammed Thoufeek) was in possession of incriminating literature and books connected to radical Islam and also had handwritten notes on the preparation of explosives," the NIA said.