In a In a major breakthrough, the Delhi Police Special Cell apprehended Shahnawaz alias Shafi Uzzama, the National Investigation Agency’s (NIA) most wanted terrorist. Shahnawaz, who had a reward of ₹3 lakhs on his head, was wanted in connection with the Pune ISIS case.

His arrest is crucial in NIA’s investigation into the ISIS Pune module case. An engineer by profession, Uzzama is a resident of Delhi. He was allegedly running an ISIS module in Maharashtra’s Pune. Ever since his escaped Pune police custody, the NIA was after him and his associates.

“The module was planning to carry out terror incidents in North India, taking instructions from foreign-based handlers. Incriminating materials were recovered including materials suspected to be used for IED fabrication,” Delhi Police Special Cell said, according to news agency ANI.

According to reports, the Delhi Police has also apprehended several other suspects. The police have not revealed the identity of those suspects and an investigation is underway to ascertain their role in ISIS-related terror activities.

Recently, the NIA had announced a reward of Rs 3 lakh on Shafi Uzzama and three more suspected ISIS terrorists – Talha Liyakat Khan, Rizwan Abdul Haji Ali and Abdulla Faiyaz Shaikh alias Daiperwala. The agency had released their pictures and sought public support as it launched a massive manhunt.

Uzzama was allegedly involved in bomb-making and part of a bigger ISIS conspiracy to carry out attacks across India. He, along with Mohammad Imran Mohammad Yunus Khan and Mohammad Yunus Mohammad Yakub Saki were arrested by Pune Police in early July this year while trying to steal a two-wheeler. However, Uzzama jumped out of the police vehicle and managed to escape.

During the investigation, Yunus Khan and Yakub Saki told the police that he has stored acid and other bomb-making material in Bopatghat near Kondhwa. When the NIA team reached the spot, they recovered the acid and several other chemicals used in bomb making. A hard drive was also found from his place. The 500-GB hard drive contained DIY information on bomb making.

Khan and Saki themselves were wanted in a separate terror case and carried Rs 5 lakh reward on their heads, respectively. They were the prime suspect in a Rajasthan case where explosives were found in a case in March 2022.