Aide of key accused in 2006 BJP leader murder case Abdul Salam Addur held in Mangaluru

After murdering the BJP leader, Kabir was allegedly sheltered for two days at Addur Tibet Colony by brothers Latheef alias Addur Latheef and Abdul Salam Addur, allowing him to evade arrest.

Mangaluru: A man who had been absconding for nearly 19 years in connection with a 2006 murder case has been arrested by Surathkal police.

According to Commissioner of Police, the arrested accused's name is Abdul Salam Addur.

On December 1, 2006, BJP leader Sukhananda Shetty was murdered near Hosabettu in the Surathkal police limits by Kabir and his associates.

After the incident, Kabir was allegedly sheltered for two days at Addur Tibet Colony by brothers Latheef alias Addur Latheef and Abdul Salam Addur, allowing him to evade arrest.

They later helped Kabir to travel to Kasaragod in Kerala, from where he went into hiding. Abdul Salam reportedly left the country three months after the crime and continued to remain underground.

Police filed a chargesheet against Abdul Salam Addur after he failed to appear before the court. Abdul Salam Addur (47), son of Aboobacker and a resident of Tibet Colony, Addur village had not appeared in court for nearly 19 years.

Acting on credible information that Abdul Salam had returned and was residing within Bajpe police limits, a police team apprehended him on Tuesday night near Bajpe-Kinnipadavu.

The Commissioner said Abdul Salam had obtained a passport in 2007, lived abroad for several years, and had recently returned to India. His house in Addur had been demolished, and he was living in a rented house in Kinnipadavu. His brother Latheef alias Addur Latheef continues to remain absconding.

In the original murder case, 16 accused have been arrested so far, while 11 others are still absconding.

Abdul Salam also faces an attempted murder case at Bajpe Police Station, where a rowdy sheet has been opened against him. The court had issued multiple warrants for his appearance over the years. As he remained untraceable for nearly 19 years, police have now registered a case under Section 209 of BNS.

The arrest was carried out under the guidance of Assistant Commissioner of Police (North Division) Srikanth K. The operation was led by Police Inspector Pramod Kumar P, PSI Raghunayak, and police personnel Annappa, Ajith Mathew, Rajendra Prasad, Vinod Naik, and Sunil Kusanale.