The operatives of the Base Movement, an outfit reportedly owing allegiance to al-Qaeda that carried out low-intensity blasts in Kollam and Malappuram, had planned similar blasts at more locations in the State, according to official sources.
The sources said a Kerala Police team, which launched a probe into the outfit’s role in the blasts, received credible information about the underground outfit targeting Central government offices and eminent personalities. The special investigation team, headed by Kochi Deputy Commissioner of Police Arul R.B. Krishna, interrogated the outfit’s operatives in the custody of the National Investigation Agency.
WhatsApp message
The police are verifying whether it was Dawood Sulaiman who sent a WhatsApp message to the Kochi City police on November 1 threatening to target strategically important places and eminent personalities. The message was followed by an international call to the Commissionerate call centre of the Kochi City police six days later. Following this, the wing registered a case and launched a probe.
“Investigations revealed that the number from which the message was sent was non-existent and hence the identity of the person who sent it could not be ascertained. We then approached the Intelligence Bureau and the National Investigation Agency,” said M.P.Dinesh, Commissioner of Police, Kochi.
Investigations revealed that the Base Movement possessed over 20 mobile phones and drew on Wi-Fi services in public areas to send threat messages. Besides the Kochi City police, they are believed to have sent similar messages to various other investigating agencies as well.
Key man found
Meanwhile, the sleuths have found that Abbas Ali was the key man behind the activities of the Base Movement.
Abbas played a major role in strengthening the organisation, founded in 2015.
The police team is slated to interrogate the Base Movement operatives again next week.
Earlier, five suspected operatives of the Base Movement were arrested from Madurai and Chennai, based on information provided by the Kerala Police.
A WhatsApp message claiming responsibility for the Malappuram blast last month was what led the police to arrive at a specific input on these operatives. The accused persons are currently lodged in Bengaluru.
