‘Naqi was in city at time of 13/7 blasts’

Mateen Hafeez TNN

Mumbai: Investigations have found that Naqi Ahmed (22), arrested for aiding and abetting the 13/7 serial blasts, was in the city on July 13 last year. DNA samples from a rented room, where the suspected bombers lived, confirmed that Naqi had visited the place several times.

Anti-terrorism squad (ATS) sources said Naqi, a BCom student, was in the city when the blasts killed 27 persons. “He was staying at his elder brother’s leather bag-making unit at Badlupura in Byculla. But he went missing from the bag unit between 11am and 7pm,” a senior official said. The three bombs went off between 6.50pm and 7pm at Zaveri Bazar, Opera House and Dadar (W).

Police sources said Naqi, who came from Bihar and studied in New Delhi, had arrived three days before the blasts. “We are yet to establish if he was with the bombers that day. We have found clinching evidence to show that he was responsible for stealing one of the two scooters used in the blasts,” the official said. The police believe that Naqi had visited Habib Apartments in Byculla, where the suspected Pakistani bombers lived for several months. “He handed over the explosives to the bombers. His aide, Nadeem Akhtar, brought the explosives from Delhi and gave them to Naqi, who handed them over to the bombers in Byculla,” he said.

Police officials were tightlipped on whether they have CCTV footage to prove that he was responsible for the scooter theft. Several shops in the area, from where the scooter was stolen, are under CCTV surveillance. “We don’t want to disclose anything about the footage. We will tell our side of the story when we file the chargesheet,” the official added.

Police sources said that after Naqi and Nadeem stole two bikes near Grant Road and C P Tank, the vehicles were handed over to the two suspected bombers near JJ Junction. “We have recovered the helmet of one scooter and a duplicate key of the bike from the arrested accused,” the officer said.

The Times of India, January 31, 2012