Czech police arrest suspected Russia's North Caucasus terrorists

Czech police arrest suspected Russia's North Caucasus terrorists

2011-05-04 01:27:22 GMT+7 (ICT)

PRAGUE, CZECH REPUBLIC (BNO NEWS) -- Czech police on Tuesday announced the arrest of eight individuals suspected of terrorism in Russia's North Caucasus region, CTK news agency reported.

The eight suspects were detained for supporting terrorist acts as they were allegedly securing false documents, arms and explosives, said Pavel Hantak, spokesman for the Squad for Uncovering Organized Crime (UOOZ).

Hantak added that the arrests stemmed from an investigation on the activities of the radical Islamist organization Jamaat Shariat. Seven suspects were charged with forgery and fraudulent alteration of an official document.

Two of the detainees, Bulgarian nationals, were also members of an organized group operating in more states with the intention to facilitating terrorist attacks. A Chechen man was also arrested for possessing illegal weapons and document forgery.

Six of the suspects are currently in custody in Prague, the Czech capital, while the remaining two are at large somewhere in Germany. The investigation was opened in mid-2008 after UOOZ received information that a Jamaat Shariat cell was operating in Czech soil.

Hantak added that UOOZ worked closely with German authorities after learning that the Islamist terrorist cell moved operations from Berlin to Prague. In early April, Czech police learned that the suspected terrorists were planning to leave the country.

In response, UOOZ in cooperation with the rapid deployment unit (URNA) launched an operation on April 6 detaining the suspects and seizing documents linked to Jamaat Shariat.

In the apartment of the Chechen suspect, Czech police found "a big quantity of weapons and ammunition." He faces up to ten years in prison if convicted. The identities of the suspects were not disclosed.

Russia continues to combat militants in the North Caucasus region, more than a decade after the end of the armed conflict with separatists in the republic of Chechnya. The most conflicted areas are Kabardino-Balkaria, Ingushetia, Dagestan, and North Ossetia.

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