NEW DELHI: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has arrested a 31-year-old suspected ISIS member, who returned from Iraq and Sriya in India, on Wednesday from Kochi after the sleuths came to know that he was planning to target sitting judges and international tourists in Kerala.
The suspected ISIS member is identified as Subahani Haja Moideen, a resident of Kadayanallur in Tirunelveli district of Tamil Nadu, has been arrested for joining and supporting the activities of the ISIS, the global terrorist organization proscribed under Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967.
Moideen originally hails from Maliyekkal House situated at Market Road at Thodupuzha in Idukki district of Kerala. He was under scanner of the security agencies and when he was giving shape to the plans to carry out the terror attacks in Kerala.
His was detained by the NIA after they carried out searches at house at Kadayanallur in Tirunelveli was on October 3. He was taken to the NIA Branch Office in Kochi for further examination.
Moideen house was searched a day after when the NIA teams conducted searches in Kozhikode and Kannur districts of Kerala and raided a hideout at the Kanakamala hilltop in Kannur district and at Kuttiyadi in Kozhikode district.
The NIA had arrested six ISIS suspects as Manseed, a resident of Kannur; Abu Basheer from Coimbatore; Swalih Mohammed from Thrissur; Safwan from Mallapuram and Jasim and Ramshad Nageelan Kandiyil from Kozhikode.
“Moideen his interrogation revealed that he had gone to Iraq on April 2015 to join ISIS and fight for the organization. He had left home telling his parents and wife that he was going to perform Umrah,” the NIA sleuths said.
As per the preliminary investigation, the agency found that he was radicalized and recruited to ISIS through social media platforms. He left India for Istanbul from Chennai on a visit visa. After reaching Istanbul, he crossed over along with others including people from Pakistan and Afghanistan to ISIS held territory in Iraq. He was taken to Mosul in Iraq, where he underwent detailed course in Shariya followed by combat training.
“On completion of combat training including training in the automated weapons, he was sent to the war zone in Mosul for security duties in ISIS held territory, which he performed for almost two-weeks. He was being paid USD 100 per month as subsistence allowance by the ISIS along with common available accommodation and food without any additional charges,” the official said.
He told interrogators that he could not withstand the violence and war misery in Mosul and decided to leave the organization when two of his friends were charred alive before him in a shell attack.
On conveying his decision to quit the organization, he was imprisoned by ISIS at Mosul and was subjected to extreme torture. He along with other similar deserting foreign fighters, was produced before a judge of the ISIS, following which he was again incarcerated at Raqqa in Syria.
“Later, for reasons yet to be ascertained, he was allowed to leave ISIS controlled territory and return to Turkey along with five other foreign nationals. Thereafter, he stayed illegally in Istanbul for about two weeks, before he approached the Indian Consulate, for returning to India. He contacted his family and conveyed his decision to return to India, following which they sent him money for flight tickets,” the agency said.
After Turkish Police issued a clearance certificate, he was issued an Emergency Certificate by Indian Consulate, over which he returned to India through Mumbai on September 22, 2015.
On his return to India, he went to his ancestral place in Kadaynallur in Tirunelveli, where he was staying till now with his wife. He got a job as a salesman in a gold jewelry shop at Kadayanallur.
“However, once back and settled, he again got in touch with ISIS handlers over internet and was planning to collect explosives and precursor chemicals from Sivakasi at their instance,” said a NIA official.
He had travelled to Chennai, Coimbatore and other places to meet other local contacts in the conspiracy, collect money and procure explosives and precursor chemicals, for terrorist acts, as guided and motivated by the ISIS handlers.