In a security lapse that proved to be an acute embarrassment for the Mumbai Police, a key Indian Mujahideen operative Afzal Usmani, who was allegedly involved in the 2008 blasts in Ahmedabad and a blast attempt in Surat, escaped from a special MCOCA court here on Friday.
Fresh from the all round praise for their early detection of the photojournalist gang-rape case, the Usmani escape has stunned city police into silence. The IM bomber fled the special court premises on a false pretext of going to toilet. late on Friday, two police personnel — who were a part of the team that escorted Usmani and 18 other accused from Taloja jail to the court — were suspended for dereliction of duty.
A close aide of IM founder and fugitive Riyaz Bhatkal, 37-year-old Usmani who was among the first Indian Mujahideen operatives to be arrested by the city-CID police in 2008, had been lodged in the Taloja jail in Raigad district. He escaped from the police custody around 2.30 pm, when he was brought to the MCOCA court at Kala Ghoda in south Mumbai, along 18 others from Taloka jail for framing of charges in a 2008 blast conspiracy case.
Usmani was among those allegedly involved in the July 26, 2008 Ahmedabad serial blasts in which 56 people were killed and over 200 others injured. Three days later, 22 bombs were recovered by the police at Surat in Gujarat, thus foiling a major serial blast attempt.
Police personnel accompanying the 19 accused noticed the disappearance of Usmani around 2.45 pm. When the special court assembled for the post-lunch session at 3 pm. Special public prosecutor Raja Thakre brought Usmani's disappearance to the notice of the Judge. “This is a serious offence. It is negligence on the part of the escort team which brought the accused to court. This (his escape) will have impact on other cases also. It is a very unfortunate incident,” said MCOCA judge Al Pansare. Following the escape of Usmani, the court deferred the framing of charges in the case to September 25 and issued an arrest warrant against Usmani. Within an hour of Usmani’s escape, the city police launched a massive manhunt to track down Usmani.
Special teams of the city police combed the entire Sessions Court premises. Nakabandis have been put in place at various strategic locations, including the entry and exit points and at railway stations. The Crime Branch-CID and Anti-Terrorism Squad have joined the city police in the manhunt. A resident of Trombay in north-east Mumbai, Usmani was arrested by the Crime Branch-CID of Mumbai Police, in 2008, when it busted the IM network - which was responsible for spate of blasts across the country.
Usmani was among the 20 IM terrorists, including four Pune-based techies, who were arrested in connection with the terror emails sent ahead of the Ahmedabad and Delhi blasts and others involved in the various post-2005 blasts in the country in September and October 2008. Usmani had been behind the bars since his arrest - and was charged before a special court set up under the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA).
Under the instructions from Usmani, the two accused in the Ahmedabad blasts --- Mohammed Mobin Abdul Shakoor Khan, alias Irfan (32), and Ayub Raja Amin Shaikh (28) --- stole four cars, three WagonR and one Maruti 800 which were used by the IM in the serial blasts in Ahmedabad and an attempted blast at Surat.
On July 12, 2011, Maharashtra's Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) sleuths have arrested two suspected Indian Mujahideen (IM) operatives Mobin and Amin Shaikh in connection with the 2008 Ahmedabad blasts and Surat blast attempt. Mobin and Amin Shaikh were handed over to the Gujarat police subsequently. Apart from organising theft of cars used in the Ahemdabad blasts and attempted blast at Surat, Usmani also allegedly at Ahemedabad Civil Hospital and planted explosives at Surat.