ATS was unaware of Baig's role prior to his arrest

During his deposition in the court yesterday ACP Vinod Satav, investigating officer in the German Bakery blast case, told the court that the Anti-terrorist Squad (ATS) did not have prior information about Himayat Inayat Mirza Baig's involvement in the blast until he was arrested.

He said Baig's involvement in the case cropped up during his interrogation. Satav, who is now an ACP with the Crime Branch, was working with ATS' Pune unit in 2010. He is the last witness to be being examined by the court in the blast case.u00a0

Mangled remains: German Bakery after the blast. File Pic

During his examination by the Special Public Prosecutor Raja Thakare, Satav informed the court that Baig (30), who hails from Beed district, was wanted in some other case.

"After the German Bakery blast occurred on February 13, 2010, we were going through files of previous such cases and suspected that it was the handiwork of terrorist organisation Lashkar-e-Toiba or the Indian Mujahideen.

Baig's name first cropped up in the confessional statement of Samad Khan, an accused in the Aurangabad arms haul case of 2006 in which 16 AK-47 rifles, 3,200 cartridges, 43 kilograms of RDX and hand grenades were seized. We also learnt that Baig was wanted by the ATS in a 2008 jihadi literature case in Pune," Satav informed the court.

In his statement, Satav said Baig was arrested on September 7, 2010, from Pulgate in Pune by the ATS and revealed his role in the blast during interrogation.