New Delhi, Aug 6 (IANS) The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has arrested another key absconding accused in the 2022 murder of Karnataka BJP leader Praveen Nettaru, taking the total number of arrests in the high-profile case to 25.
The accused, identified as Ummar Farook M.R., was apprehended on Wednesday from Kochi, Kerala, following a targeted operation based on credible intelligence inputs.
Ummar Farook, who had been absconding, was wanted in the case and had a Red Corner Notice (RCN) and a non-bailable warrant issued against him. The investigating agency had also announced a reward of Rs 4 lakh for information leading to his arrest.
The NIA had earlier chargesheeted Ummar Farook in connection with the conspiracy behind the murder under various provisions of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA). Investigations revealed that he attended a conspiracy meeting at the office of the banned Popular Front of India (PFI) in Sullia town along with other accused persons.
According to the investigation, Ummar Farook had agreed to provide his motorcycle to a co-accused for identifying potential targets and conducting reconnaissance in Bellare village before the murder. He is also accused of participating, along with other co-accused, in an attempt to eliminate a protected witness in the case.
The latest arrest comes weeks after the NIA, in July this year, apprehended two other absconding accused, Abdul Nasir P., alias Nasir, and Naushad from Kochi in Kerala and Hosur in Tamil Nadu, respectively, in a coordinated operation based on information received from the Andhra Pradesh Police.
The murder of Praveen Nettaru, a local BJP leader from Dakshina Kannada district, on July 26, 2022, had triggered widespread outrage and led to the NIA taking over the investigation. The agency’s probe has revealed that the killing was part of a larger criminal conspiracy allegedly orchestrated by cadres of the banned PFI.
In the case, two accused still remain absconding. Efforts are continuing to trace and arrest the remaining fugitives and bring the investigation to its logical conclusion.
–IANS
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