According to a report by Republic Bharat, Mangaluru auto blast suspect Mohammed Shariq was inspired by radical Islamic preacher Zakir Naik. This allegation is substantiated by the fact that Zakir Naik made a tweet regarding the suicide bombing within hours after the blast in the auto in Mangaluru was reported.
On November 19, at 6:13 p.m., Zakir Naik tweeted about suicide bombing while the Mangaluru auto blast occurred at 4:29 p.m. on the same day. From his official YouTube channel, which has over 3 million subscribers, he released a video titled “Is Suicide Bombing Allowed in Islam?”
Interestingly, Shariq, the suspect in the Mangaluru bomb, had multiple videos of Zakir Naik on his phone. He allegedly referred to him as his true inspiration. More than 50 videos of Zakir Naik’s talks, according to the sources cited by Republic Bharat, were discovered on Shariq’s phone.
The tweet was made by the Twitter handle @drzakiranaik which claims to be the official handle of the fugitive Islamic preacher. It has more than 45 thousand followers. The Twitter account is also linked to Naik’s verified Facebook page.
Days after the explosion in Karnataka’s coastal town Mangaluru was confirmed to be a homemade pressure cooker bomb, it has come to light that the accused in the case, Mohammed Shariq, utilised cryptocurrency to carry out the terror operation.
Reportedly, the probing agencies noted that Shariq and his handlers used cryptocurrencies and the dark web to make financial transactions and received funds online to execute the blast. Shariq traded in bitcoins and received funding online from the Middle east for the terror operation. Cryptocurrency has emerged as a major threat in terms of terror funding and the Police in this case are closely investigating its involvement.
Shariq used fake IDs in Hindu name to rent a room
On November 21, it was reported that the accused Mohammed Shariq, who had previously been detained under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), had used fake identity cards to rent a room in Mysore. The Forensic Science Laboratory Division (FSL) team arrived at Shariq’s rented house in Mysore on Sunday as the inquiry into the Mangaluru bomb case proceeded. The squad seized explosive-making ingredients from Shariq’s home.
Gelatin powder, circuit boards, tiny bolts, batteries, mobile phones, wood power, aluminium multimeters, cables, mixing jars, pressure cookers, and other components required to build explosives were found by the FSL team. One mobile phone, two fake Aadhaar cards, one fake pan card, and one FINO debit card were also discovered by the forensic experts. The accused is alleged to have been assembling explosive devices at his home.
The suspect was paying Rs 1,800 per month for a single room, according to the house owner from Mysore. He presented a copy of the rental agreement, which showed the suspect’s name as Premraj, S/o Sri Maruthi, and his address as Hubballi.
The Police amid the investigations on November 22, also recovered the CCTV footage showing the accused boarding the auto-rickshaw at Naguri minutes before the explosion. In the footage, Shariq could be seen carrying a huge backpack in which the pressure cooker that was turned into IED was allegedly packed. The second suspect could also be seen with Shariq in the video. Karnataka Police has revealed that the suspect used the Isha Foundation logo as the display picture on his social media accounts to mask his identity.
