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Bengaluru, Apr 12: The two men who allegedly plotted and executed the blast that rocked Rameshwaram Cafe in Bengaluru last month have been arrested from Kanthi in Bengal's East Midnapore district, the National Investigation Agency said Friday morning. 

Mussavir Hussain Shazeb and Abdul Matheen Taha were caught after a joint operation by central intelligence agencies and police from Bengal, Karnataka, Telangana, and Kerala, and are en route to Kolkata, the anti-terror agency said in a statement.

The available evidence indicates Shazeb planted the explosive device, placed inside a backpack, at the popular eatery. Taha was responsible for planning the attack and for their disappearance.

These are the second and third arrests in this case; last month Muzammil Shareef, who extended logistical support to the Shazeb and Taha, was taken into custody.

Residents of Karnataka's Shivamogga district, Shazeb and Taha were traced to Kanthi after officials conducted searches at 18 locations across Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, and even Uttar Pradesh.

The blast at Bengaluru's Rameshwaram Cafe on March 1 injured 10 people, customers and staff.

Fortunately there were no deaths; the bag containing the explosives was placed in a relatively less crowded area and against a large pillar that absorbed the brunt of the explosion.

After the blast, the NIA released photos and videos of the accused, as seen on CCTV cameras across Bengaluru. In one such clip, the accused - wearing a face mask - was seen boarding a bus.

The agency had declared a reward of ₹ 10 lakh for information leading to the arrest of each accused. The agency had also questioned their acquaintances, including college and school friends.

The Rameshwaram Cafe, which suffered extensive damage after the blast, reopened eight days later, with enhanced security measures including metal detectors.

BJP’s reaction

The Karnataka BJP on Friday attacked the Siddaramaiah government after the arrest of two men by the NIA in the Bengaluru cafe blast case, saying that the terrorists were 'brothers' of the Congress.

Taking to social media, Karnataka BJP stated, “National Investigation Agency (NIA) detains ‘Brothers’ of Congress in Rameshwaram Blast case. Ever since Jihadi Tipu Sultan’s admirers came to power in Karnataka, terrorists have got a free ride.”

“Chief Minister Siddaramaiah’s ‘Ease of Doing Terror’ Policies have prompted ISIS to now set up its shop in Karnataka. The only guarantee that CM Siddaramaiah has fulfilled is converting prosperous Karnataka into a terror hub,” the BJP stated.

Cybercriminals and hackers siphoned off at least a whopping Rs 465 crore from people across Karnataka in 2023 alone, i.e., an average of Rs 1.27 crore per day, according to the latest data from the Criminal Investigation Department. 

Investigators foresee a “colossal” rise in new-age cybercrimes in the current year as fraudsters upgrade their game and adopt new ways to cheat.

The total money lost to cybercrimes in 2023 rose by a staggering 151% year-on-year and by 450% compared to 2021.

Cybercrooks pocketed Rs 185 crore in 2022 and Rs 84 crore in 2021. 

Karnataka last year reported 21,868 cybercrime cases. Bengaluru alone reported 17,623 of them. 

The most common money-spinning crimes were phishing, FedEx scams, investment and task completion frauds, according to MA Saleem, Director General of Police, CID, Special Units and Economic Offences. 

Police officers privy to cybercrime investigations last year say OTP and phishing frauds dominated the first few months of 2023 but as the year wound down, FedEx, investment and task completion frauds, and Aadhaar-enabled payment scams took hold. At the same time,  many victims fell prey to sextortion, loan app harassment and counterfeit websites.

While Bengaluru reported a lion’s share of cybercrimes, senior police officers believe the extent of cybercrimes in the state’s small towns and villages is grossly under-reported because many victims do not file complaints.

For example, Hassan reported just 100-150 cybercrimes and Tumakuru 250-300. 

Ashok KV, Superintendent of Police, Tumakuru, says most victims in rural areas are either unaware that they can file complaints in such cases or simply don’t realise the fraud. 

“In some cases, they lose small amounts of money and just let it go,” Ashok said, adding that the police are holding awareness programmes to educate people about the different types of cybercrimes. 

Hassan SP, Mohammed Sujeetha MS, notes that in Hassan, most cases are filed at town police stations, mostly by people having connections in Bengaluru. Two months ago, Hassan police launched an initiative called ‘Tereda Mane’ to bring police and people together and raise awareness about crimes. “We need to reach every last person but that’s a long way to go,” she said.

Another senior officer who spoke on condition of anonymity said young adults from rural areas hesitate to inform their elders and approach the police despite falling prey to cyber scams, especially if it’s of a sexual nature. 

Bengaluru North Deputy Commissioner of Police Saidulu Adavath, under whose watch police cracked the first-ever FedEx scam, pointed to the large number of mule accounts being operated from rural areas in Karnataka.

“We arrested four people in Davangere who had lent their identity documents for creating mule accounts that were eventually used to carry out the scams. They were lured with government schemes. People in rural areas are prone to creating mule accounts. It’s a trend,” he said.

Speaking at a recent conclave on cybercrimes, C Vamsi Krishna, DIGP, CID, noted that cybercriminals are increasingly using Malware as a Service (MaaS). He also believes AI can be used to carry out cybercrimes through malware. 

Another senior officer from the CID said fake websites had mushroomed all over the internet to carry out cybercrimes. “These websites have typos in their name but look legit. Cyber fraudsters use them to siphon off money from people booking travel tickets,” the officer said.

Bengaluru: Former Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister and BJP leader KS Eshwarappa returned empty handed after he failed to meet Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Wednesday. Eshwarappa who has rebelled against the Karnataka state leadership then returned to Shivamogga.

After this, Eshwarappa reiterated that he is going to contest against former Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa's son and incumbent MP B Y Raghavendra in Shivamogga as he had announced earlier.

“I received a call from Mr. Shah on Tuesday morning when he arrived in Bengaluru during which he invited me to Delhi to discuss in person the reasons for my rebellion. But after coming to Delhi, I got a call from his office stating that he is not available to meet me,” Eshwarappa told mediapersons in Delhi. 

He said "No more talks and will take his fight to a logical end and he will contest from Shivamogga."

Putting up a condition he said, State BJP president B Y Vijayendra must be removed from president post then only he will agree to withdraw his decision not to contest in Shivamogga.

Attacking BS Yediyurappa and family saying "One family holding powers of state BJP which is hurting the sentiments of Hindu karyakarthas and BJP workers."

Earlier, ahead of the seeking the meeting with Amit Shah, Eshwarappa had made it clear that he will not change his decision to contest the election unless the state BJP president BY Vijayendra, son of former Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa, is replaced before the polls.

Eshwarappa said his fight is against the control of the BJP in the state "by one family".

"Prime Minister Narendra Modi used to say that Congress has a family culture. Similarly, the BJP is in the hands of one family in the state. The party should be freed from that family. Party workers are hurt. I will compete and contest to relieve the pain of workers," he said.

He said the work of those who fought for Hindutva ideology and the organization should be respected. "I'm contesting to fix the mess. I will not step back from the decision, I will pay my respects to you and come to Delhi," the BJP leader said.

Eshwarappa said his son had told him that even if he does not get a political future, "the party should be cleansed".

Voting for Lok Sabha seats in Karnataka will be held in two phases on April 26 and May 7 for 28 constituencies. Shivamogga will go to the polls on May 7.