Riyaz Bhatkal, the elusive co-founder of Indian Mujahideen (IM) and one of the country’s most wanted men for his alleged role in the bomb blasts in Jaipur, Bangalore, Ahmedabad and Delhi last year, is believed to have slipped out of India and found safe haven in Pakistan.

His elder brother Iqbal, another IM fugitive wanted in connection with the same terror attacks, is still at large within India.

Riyaz’s presence in Pakistan was discovered nearly two months ago when he called an associate in India, top security sources said. Phones of some of Riyaz’s associates in India were being monitored by central intelligence agencies and Riyaz’s call was detected and the location traced to Pakistan, they said. His identity was confirmed after voice samples with the agencies were matched with that of the voice on the call, they added.

“The call from Pakistan was made around two months ago, and we worked on it for a while to confirm whether it was actually Riyaz Bhatkal’s voice. Samples of his voice from previous intercepts collected while he was still in the country were found to match with this call,” said an official who spoke on condition of anonymity.

Riyaz is last known to have lived in India in Mangalore. Officials believe that shortly after Jaipur and Ahmedabad blasts accused Qayamuddin Kapadia was arrested from Ujjain, Riyaz fled to Bangladesh and then reached Pakistan via Nepal.