KOCHI: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) probing activities of the Islamic State (IS) in Kerala and Tamil Nadu has started quizzing persons who are associated with the 11 persons accused in the case. According to NIA officials, several persons who maintained close contact with the IS operatives, including the seven persons arrested from various parts of the State, were questioned.
An NIA officer said that suspects hailing from Kannur, Kozhikode, Chennai and Coimbatore were being questioned based on information, including digital evidence, gathered following a tip-off that they regularly communicated with members of the IS module. “We have interrogated several persons from Kerala and Tamil Nadu in the last two weeks, of which some will be interrogated further. We have received information about involvement of more persons in the case,” said the official.
The NIA team is currently on the lookout for four persons who have been arraigned as accused in the case. Meanwhile, the NIA will be producing seven persons arrested recently, including Thodupuzha-native Subahani Moideen Haja who fought for the IS in Iraq, before NIA Court here on Friday. Earlier, the curt had sent the arrested persons to the custody of NIA officials, who are expected to seek extension of their custody.