Kolkata: STF raids arms dealer’s homes, seizes explosives

“Both came to Kolkata via Ranchi and stayed at a hotel named Balaji for three days. When we verified Riazul’ s claim about meeting Samsad in Hyderabad, he told that he came from Bangladesh to Kolkata directly with the help of Sahadat Hossain (a Bangladeshi tout). They (Samsad and Riazul) started looking for some house on rent around Kolkata and were also in touch with the arms dealer (Dey),” said an official.

Shopon Biswas and Nayan Gazi, both wanted ABT members, had come to Kolkata separately. They did not meet either Samsad or Riazul in Kolkata. Hotel records suggested that Shopon and Nayan stayed at the hotel between October 1 and October 3. Sahadat, who has been arrested, revealed that he had met Shopon during those days in Howrah, sources said.

Sahadat Hossain had allegedly helped Samsad and Riazul enter India illegally. “Current whereabouts of Shopon, Nayan and Umar are yet to be traced. We are looking for them,” said an official.

The ABT is an al-Qaeda-affiliated Islamic extremist group in Bangladesh, allegedly responsible for the killing of bloggers and intellectuals. During preliminary investigation, the STF allegedly found that Samsad and Riazul had come to Kolkata to purchase arms as well as chemicals used to make explosives.