Adnan alias Abdul Hafees alias Shafi who is believed to be a vital link in the terrorist network unravelled in the State recently, appears to have escaped with a massive cache of arms and ammunition, courtesy the inept Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS), Bangalore.

The ATS was alerted by the Davangere police that Adnan, who has links with terror suspects Riyazuddin Naser, Asadullah and Mohammed Asif, was hiding at his brother’s place at Vibhutipura Main Road near Annasandrapalya in the City. The men-in-khaki managed to zero in on the calls made by Adnan from a STD PCO booth in a general departmental store at Annasandrapalya. But by the time the police landed at Adnan’s doorstep, he had fled.
The shop was situated opposite the house where Adnan was holed up for more than three days.
Adnan was believed to have been alerted by Asif, the third suspect arrested by the police, immediately after the police picked him up for interrogation.

According to sources, Adnan and Asif are part of the JMSEM (Jamayath Muslim South East Mujahid), a not-so-well-known outfit. They shared a room in Hubli.

This is the second time that the police has been found wanting in  their investigations into the terror network that appears to have spread its tentacles across the State.

Honnali beat constables K S Talawar, A Murgesh and A K Chandrappa — who were rewarded with Rs 50,000 each recently by the governor’s office for their role in breaking the terror racket — allegedly erred at the first step itself.

They accidentally ran into terror suspects Naser and Asadullah on the night of January 9 last near Kadukatte Cross near Honnali in Davangere district. The duo, wearing helmets, stood near a motorcycle. The third helmet in their hands aroused suspicion in the constables. The two youths were immediately picked up by the constables, who, however, locked them at a nearby panchayat office and left on some personal errand. The constables failed to confiscate the duo’s mobile phones, SIM cards, and credit and debit cards.

The constables returned after few hours, by which time Naser and Asadullah had alerted their accomplices. The duo’s accomplices allegedly  moved their weapons and explosive consignments. The toilet in the panchayat office was later found to be strewn with pieces of SIM cards and credit cards, apparently destroyed by the duo.

Naser and Asadullah allegedly visited Bangalore City more than 13 times. They stayed in crowded places like R T Nagar and Chowdeshwari Nagar among other places. The Bangalore police are now looking for Basheer alias Bashi who helped the duo move around in the City.