In what could prove a major breakthrough to solving Thursday’s terror strikes in the city, police have stumbled upon the image of a suspect, captured by a surveillance camera mounted atop a traffic signal near the blast site.
Sources said the suspect, in his early thirties, is seen riding a bicycle at 6.38 p.m. and going towards one of the blast sites. At 6.45 p.m., he is seen returning on foot, presumably, after leaving the bicycle near the kerb.
There were two blasts on Thursday at 6.58 p.m. and 7.01 p.m. The bicycle had a bag hung to its carrier, which the police believe had an Improvised Explosive Device (IED).
The suspect is clad in a full-sleeved shirt and green trousers. The bicycle he rode appeared to be old.
“The bicycle was the one typically used by labourers. The bag could have contained the IED,” a police officer said. The face of the suspect was, however, not captured clearly.
“It would be easy for someone who had seen him earlier to recognise. But for a stranger it would be difficult to describe the facial features,” the cop said.
Special police teams are spending considerable time examining the visuals.
In addition to sifting the sites for physical evidences — an arduous task because of the unhindered movement of people, media personnel and politicians alike — the investigators have begun interviewing eyewitnesses, businessmen and others working in the shops on the road. They believe that this exercise will yield useful information and help them prepare a portrait of the suspects who planted the improvised explosive devices (IEDs).
Police officers were also going into the possibility of the terrorists having cut the wires of some CCTV cameras, after they were told that the wires of a CCTV camera near a shop were found cut.
The sequence of the blasts was also reconstructed. Forensic experts surmise that the two devices could have been hung on the carriers of two old cycles, whose mangled metal frames were found at the sites.
“It appeared as if the IEDs had been hung nearly three feet high from the ground. This could be to ensure that they were not immediately noticed,” a forensic expert told The Hindu .
“The injuries [to the victims] were mostly below the waist while some lost limbs. Casualties could have been higher if they had placed the IEDs on the seats as the flying shrapnel would hit their heads,” the experts said.
“We have some clues. We will catch them soon. Any person providing information leading to the arrest of the accused will be rewarded and his identity kept secret,” Cyberabad Commissioner Ch. Dwaraka Thirumal Rao said.
Two cases were registered in the Malakpet (Crime No. 56/2013) and Saroornagar police (146/2013) stations, which are on the borders of the Hyderabad and Cyberabad Police Commissionerates.
