2 Key Accused In Cafe Blast Brought To Bengaluru After Arrest In Bengal

The two key accused in Bengaluru's Rameshwaram Cafe blast case, who were arrested in West Bengal yesterday, will be produced in a Bengaluru court today.

Adbul Matheen Ahmed Taahaa and Mussavir Hussain Shazib were brought to Bengaluru late last evening after their arrest by the National Investigation Agency (NIA).

Shazeb and Taha were traced to Kanthi, or Contai, a small city 180 km from Kolkata, after officials conducted searches at 18 locations across Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, and Uttar Pradesh.

The accused, Adbul Matheen Ahmed Taahaa and Mussavir Hussain Shazib, had been staying in a lodge in Bengal, officials said.

A court in Kolkata had yesterday granted a 3-day transit remand to the two men, allowing the NIA to take them to Bengaluru.

"Taahaa was the mastermind behind the blast while Shazib placed the Improvised Explosive Device (IED) at the cafe," officials said.

The two men were on the run since the explosion rocked the popular Bengaluru cafe on March 1, leaving 10 people injured.

"It was Abdul Matheen who also worked on the escape plans and managed to evade arrest all these weeks. The duo, along with their co-accused Maaz Muneer Ahmed, were also involved in terror cases earlier," the NIA said.

The NIA took over the probe on March 3 and had announced a reward of Rs 10 lakh for information leading to the arrest of each of the accused.

The Rameshwaram Cafe, which suffered extensive damage after the blast, reopened eight days later, with enhanced security measures including metal detectors.

"We have strengthened our security team and are also trying to set up a separate panel of ex-servicemen who will train security guards at all our branches," co-founder Raghavendra Rao said.