NIA video: Church Street blast prime accused identifies self

Bengaluru: The alleged Church Street blast prime accused Rafeeq alias Alam Jeb Afridi alias Jaweed, who was arrested last month by the National Investigation Agency has reportedly identified himself in the video grab, which was released by the agency days before his arrest for identification of the suspected youth in the video footage, official sources told this newspaper.

“Afridi confessed he was behind making and planting the improvised explosive device at the behest of his remote handler using the online site — ‘Justpaste.it.’

He had learnt to make the IED from the online site and sourced the material from the city,” said an official source. He added that Afridi was also in touch with the Daesh sympathiser Mohammed Nafees Khan, 24, from Hyderabad, who was reportedly motivated by Armar Shafi alias ‘Gumnam of Syria’ using ‘Justpaste.it.

“We suspect Shafi was also behind the Church Street blast and motivated Afridi to carry out the attack. Afridi and Nafees, who is alle-gedly the ‘head of finance’ of Daesh-inspired ‘Janood-ul-khalifa-al-Hind’ were planning to join Daesh in Syria,” added the officer.  He was arrested in Hyd-erabad in January.

Nafees was arrested by the NIA last month from Hyderabad along with 13 other alleged Daesh sympathizers from across India.

Afridi, who is reportedly involved in terror cases in Ahmedabad had come to Bengaluru in 2010 and was working as a mechanic for air conditioners. “He was living under the alias of Rafeeq and had even managed to get his Aadhar card under his alias. He was recently married,” the officer added.