Indian intelligence officers have detained an alleged Islamic State member who planned to carry out a terrorist attack in Kerala province after following the Sri Lankan bombing leader for more than a year.

Riyas Aboobacker, aka Riyas A, is scheduled to appear in court on Tuesday after being arrested “for conspiring to commit a terrorist act,” the National Investigation Agency (NIA) said.

“He admitted that he wanted to carry out a suicide attack in Kerala,” the agency claimed, noting that during the interrogation, the 29-year-old also “disclosed that he has been following speeches/videos of Zahran Hashim of Sri Lanka for more than a year,” as well as other radical preachers.

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Hashim, a Sri Lankan Muslim preacher, reportedly masterminded the Easter Sunday suicide attacks on churches and hotels in Sri Lanka, which killed over 250 people and injured hundreds more. Authorities believe that the cleric also radicalized several Indian youths.



Aboobacker had been questioned by the NIA since Sunday after authorities conducted multiple raids on suspected Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS) members. “Three group members have been interrogated for their ISIS links and their plans,” the NIA said. The raids were linked to the so-called 2016 Kasargod Islamic State case, where at least 15 men left the country to join IS fighters in Syria and Iraq.

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