Cops intensify hunt for Al Umma men

Suresh Kumar was hacked to death near an STD booth in Ambattur in June 2014. He was last of the series of Saffron killings that took place in the State from 2012 to 2014. A total of seven persons, all with BJP links, were killed at that time. The State police, which had initially denied the existence of a pattern in the killing, later admitted that Muslim militant outfits had planned and executed the murders.

The police had said that Suresh’s murder was planned and executed by 16 people and the mastermind was said to be Kaja Moideen, a self-styled head of IS in TN. Special investigation division of the TN police had arrested all the suspects at that time.

“Three of the arrested suspects went absconding and non-bailable warrants were issued,” a senior police official said when asked about the searches that are being carried out across the State by various police units to locate them.

Sources added that the police had been frantically searching for the three missing men in Chennai, Coimbatore,Tiruppur, Cuddalore and Madurai. The police became aware that at least three of them were missing when the suspects failed to turn up for hearing at Poonamalee court last month.

Sources noted that the missing men are militants and that they could plan more attacks. Following the development, the police had beefed up security for many Hindu leaders in the city.