Karnataka Police arrests 3 main suspects in Praveen Nettaru murder case

An official from the Ullal Police Station, told South First on condition of anonymity, “Shiyabuddin, Riyaz, and Bashir were the main assailants who murdered Praveen Nettaru on the night of 26 July. They used a bike with a Kerala number to commit the crime. This was used as a crucial clue to trace their probable location. All key suspects were arrested in Talapady, which is in the vicinity of the Karnataka-Kerala border.”

The officer added: “Shiyabuddin, Riyaz (27), and Bashir (29) have been booked under Sections 16 and 18 of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, and IPC Sections 302, 120B, and 34. The accused hail from Sullia and Subramanya.”

ADGP Mangaluru Karnataka Alok Kumar told reporters on Thursday, “Today around 8 am, the Dakshina Kannada Police nabbed 3 people who were involved in the murder. Earlier, we had arrested 7 people who were part of the conspiracy.”

As per the statement of the ADGP, all three were arrested on definite information. They escaped to Kerala immediately after murdering Nettaru and kept changing places. They would be interrogated to determine the reason behind the targeting of Nettaru. 

Six vehicles — five two-wheelers and one four-wheeler — pertaining to the case have been seized by the police. 

The cops did not explicitly mention the links of the accused to the PFI and the SDPI.

Kumar said, “It is too early to conclude this. There were suspected links in previous arrests. Exact details cannot be revealed to the public.” 

One accused named Kabir was arrested by the police on Tuesday.

The total number of arrests made in the murder case now stands at 10. 

The first arrest in the case was on 28 July of Zakir and Shafiq followed by the arrest of Saddam and Harris on 2 August and on 7 August, Junaid Abid and Naufal were nabbed by the police.

The 32-year-old BJP Yuva Morcha worker Praveen Nettaru was hacked to death on the night of 26 July in Bellare of the Sullia taluk of the Dakshina Kannada district.