IB grills man caught in sea off city for IS links

He was found by a fisherman Madhan on Monday. The man, S Mohammed, came to Chennai allegedly from Syria in a boat, along with four Keralites. Sources told DTNext that Mohammed, who is suspected to be mentally deranged, could not give a proper reply about the whereabouts of the other four men who were with him. 

“He seems to be mentally deranged. The intelligence agencies have been alerted and they are interrogating him,” a police officer said. The police are trying to run a background check on him. Intelligence agencies are probing if the man has links with IS.  

The Coast Guard and Navy have also been alerted to launch a search for any stray ship or boat in a bid to locate the four Keralites. “A medical examination will soon be conducted on Mohammed to assess his mental stability,” a senior Intelligence officer said. IB sources also said that according to Mohammed, it would take 18 days for a boat to travel from Syria to Chennai through Suez Canal.

The second easiest route, through the Cape of Good Hope would take 49 days and 17 hours. All other routes take over 70 days and it would be impossible to survive without enough food supply.