NIA, IB grill Tamil Nadu youth over IS link

Chennai: Sleuths of the National Investigation Agency and Intelligence Bureau on Thursday evening detained a Colombo bound air passenger from Chennai for questioning for more than three hours for his alleged links with the Islamic State (IS). The 25-year-old youth from Parangipettai in Cuddalore was grilled at the airport by teams from central security agencies, over his possible connection to a case in Kerala, which is being probed by NIA.

He was to fly by 4.05 pm flight to Colombo on Thursday when the sleuths intercepted him minutes before he boarded the plane. “It looks like he was under surveillance for more than a week by IB sleuths and it was decided to detain and question him last minute at the airport,” sources added. He was stopped at the immigration counter and sleuths questioned him for more than 3 hours. Sources on Friday claimed that he was allowed to go home after questioning.

It may be noted that this is the second case IS case witnessed in the city in the last four days. On Monday night special operation guards of the Rajasthan police picked up on Haroon Rasheed, 36, from Kondithope in Chennai for questioning him in connection with his alleged donation to IS.  He had been running a mobile phone shop in Burma Bazaar. He had allegedly sent Rs 5 lakh to the accounts of ISIS fighters abroad.

Police sources said that two brothers of Haroon Rasheed were also summoned by the Rajasthan police for questioning. The Monday night’s arrest is believed to be the follow up to the earlier arrest made by Rajasthan cops in February this year in Chennai. In February 40-year-old Mohamed Iqbal from Mylapore was picked up after he was found donating generously to ISIS.