NIA nabs 2 alleged members of Hyderabad terror module

The NIA today arrested the chief of the terror module busted here last month and also the man who radicalised its members as the Central agency's probe into the cell suspected to be linked to the dreaded militant group Islamic State(IS) gained momentum. With this, seven men linked to the module have been nabbed till now. The anti-terror agency earlier apprehended five other members, which it claimed, were conspiring to commit terrorist acts in various parts of the country. The duo held today was identified by the National Investigation Agency(NIA) as Naimathullah Hussaini alias Yasir alias Abu Darda (42) and Mohammed Ataullah Rehman, both residents of Hyderabad. The NIA claimed that Rehman played a key role in plotting terror strikes and that he was also involved in radicalising the group members and administered `Bay h' - oath of allegiance - to Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the IS chief. Rehman participated in several conspiracy meetings as revealed during interrogation of other co-accused arrested in the case, it said. Yasir was appointed the "amir" (chief) of the module and was its main fund raiser. He also participated in key conspiracy meetings, the agency said. The duo was produced before Metropolitan Sessions Judge K Rajkumar who remanded them in eight-day NIA custody. The five other members of the module - Mohammed Ibrahim Yazdani alias Ibbu, Habeeb Mohammed alias Sir, Mohammed Ilyas Yazdani, Abdullah Bin Ahmed Al Amoodi and Muzaffar Hussain Rizwan -- were arrested last month after a series of searches conducted at 10 locations at the old city here. On July 1, they were sent to police custody for 12 days and all of them were today produced before the Court after completion of their custody period. As part of investigations into the case, NIA sought further custody of Mohammed Ibrahim and Mohammed Ilyas. The Court allowed the plea and sent them in eight-day custody of the Central agency. The remaining three IS suspects - Habeeb Mohammed, Abdullah al-Amoodi and Muzaffar Rizwan - were sent to judicial custody.