NIA arrests Kerala youth in Islamic State module probe

The National Investigation Agency on Wednesday arrested Mouinudheen Parakadavath, a Kerala resident, in connection with its probe into an alleged Islamic State module.

Mouinudheen, wanted by the NIA, arrived at the IGI Airport here on February 14 from Abu Dhabi, the agency said in a statement.

The 25-year-old, a resident of Kasaragod, was summoned for questioning at the agency’s headquarters on Tuesday, the NIA said.

“During examination, he admitted to his involvement in the conspiracy and therefore, he has been arrested at NIA Headquarters,” it said.

The NIA said the case relates to a terror module in which a group of youths from Kerala, including some members based in the Middle East, hatched conspiracy under instructions from their online IS handlers. It said that on October 2, 2016, based on intelligence inputs, five accused associated with this terror module, were arrested from Kanakmala Hill in Kannur district, Kerala and another associate was arrested from Kozhikode the same day.

“Based on their revelation, it was established that Mouinudheen was a key figure in the module, which was actively planning various aspects of terrorist plot, on a telegram group,” the NIA said.