Coimbatore car blast | Investigators suspect explosive substances were procured online 

Investigators probing the Coimbatore car explosion suspect that a sizeable quantity of explosive substances seized in the case were purchased online from popular e-commerce websites like Amazon, Flipkart etc. 

According to police sources, a special team investigating the source of the explosive substances has written to Amazon and Flipkart calling for details of potassium nitrate and sulphur consignments delivered to addresses in Coimbatore and its nearby areas in the last two years. 

Zeroing-in on a few names or addresses that appeared to be suspicious, police are awaiting information from the sellers on the mode of payment, user identity details registered in the e-commerce website and quantity of the chemical sold etc. Police seized 76.5 kg of potassium nitrate from the premises of Jameesha Mubin after the early morning explosion in which he was killed on Sunday, the sources said.

“It appears that they procured small quantities of the explosive substances over a period of time. There is also a possibility of purchasing the chemicals from Kerala. Since Mubin and his associates were in touch with Rashid Ali and Azharuddin, arrested by the National Investigation Agency and lodged in the Thrissur prison in connection with in a terror case, we have requested the Kerala police to check whether they visited them in prison in the recent past,” a senior police officer told The Hindu on Wednesday.

He said Mubin and his close relatives, whose names were given as Azhar and Afzal, tried to mix the chemicals on the basis of information available in some YouTube videos and websites. They had no professional training or exposure to make bombs. “There was no trigger mechanism in the bomb that they designed in the car…it was a crude method and it could have accidentally got triggered while Mubin tried to escape on seeing the police at the check-post,” the official who preferred not to be quoted said.

Vigil on scrap dealers 

Director-General of Police C. Sylendra Babu said senior police officers across the State were instructed to mount surveillance on scrap dealers handling condemned/abandoned cars. “The car used in this case was provided by an agent who deals with such cars. We are looking at the immediate past activities of traders involved in segregating parts from abandoned cars and selling them in the open market. Their bank accounts are also being verified to check any unusual entries. An enumeration of cars found parked for a long time is also being done,” he said.