The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has arrested a 33-year-old man that is suspected to be behind the 2006 Kozhikode bomb blast cases, he was arrested as he landed from Saudi Arabia.

Mohammed Ashar has been on the run since he was charged by the NIA back in 2010, Ashar is from Kerala’s Kannur District, and is a resident of Thalassery.

The NIA arrested him on Thursday after landing in the IGI Airport (Indira Gandhi International).

The spokesperson from said: “The cases pertain to the twin improvised explosive device blasts that occurred at the KSRTC and mofussil bus stands in Kozhikode (Calicut) city on March 3, 2006, causing injuries to two persons besides damage to property.”

The NIA took over the investigation of the cases from the police in 2009. They charged 8 accused individuals that included Mohammed Ashar, and in 2010 they were charged under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act, IPC, and Explosive Substances Act.

The agency said that the investigation revealed that Ashar and P P Yusuf were both involved in the criminal act, Safas and T Naseer also were also responsible for the IED blasts in Kozhikode City, this happened when protest was happening over the denial of bail given to those Muslims that were accused in the 2003 Marad riots.

The agency said that both Yusuf and Ahsar helped Naseer prepare the explosives and plant them in the bus terminals of Kozhikode City.

During his run, Ashar went to Saudi Arabia in 2007 in order to avoid the charges that were in his name.