They had clean records: Police

EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE

HYDERABAD, SEPTEMBER 18: MOHD Jaweed Azmath and Ayub Ali Khan, both taken into custody by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) on suspicion of their possible involvement in last week’s terrorist attacks on New York, have no criminal track record back home here, police sources said.

The two, both hailing from Hyderabad, were detained by FBI agents at Fort Worth railway station while on their way to Texas a couple of days ago. They were then taken to New York for questioning.
On receipt of information, the Andhra Pradesh police inquired into the antecedents of Azmath and Ayub Ali Khan, both residents of Dhood Bowli in the Old City.

The Intelligence Bureau, the intelligence wing of the state police, and the city police conducted independent inquiries throughout the day today but could not get any information that pointed to the duo’s possible links with any terrorist outfit.

Police glanced through old records and talked to the parents of the suspects at length. ‘‘We could gather nothing as of now. They were not in our records at any point of time,’’ city police Additional Commissioner K. Aravinda Rao told The Indian Express.

Intelligence wing officials too had something similar to say. ‘‘It is true that they have no criminal track record. But we are continuing our inquiry,’’ Intelligence sources added.

According to the city police, the original name of Ayub Ali Khan is Syed Gul Mohammed Shah.

He left for the United States in 1993 on an Indian passport and shuttled between the two countries a couple of times.

He was here last year and married a local girl and left for the US sometime in June. Police are now trying to find out why Shah changed his name to Ayub Ali Khan.

Azmath left for the United States in 1993 and it is learnt that both of them were putting up together. In 1999, Azmath had reportedly come here and obtained a fresh passport.

He was here again in January this year and married a Pakistan national, believed to be his relative, before returning to the United States in June, sources said.