Agencies 

Bangalore, Apr 6: Terror suspect Sabauddin has confessed to police here that he was the mastermind behind the December 2005 terror strike on the Indian Institute of Science here which he executed at the behest of the Lashkar-e-Toiba, a top police official said on Saturday.

 
Sabauddin, whose custody was secured by the Corps of Detectives (CoD) from Lucknow, revealed during interrogation that he with his associate Hamza had identified four targets for the terror attack but zeroed on IISc as it was hosting an international conference, joint commissioner of police (Crime) Gopal Hosur said.

Police have recovered a bag belonging to Sabauddin from a house in Hebbal in the city, which he had rented while plotting the attack.

The bag contained various articles, including the clothes of Hamza, Hosur said.

The strike, which claimed the life of a Delhi-based assistant professor, had sent shock waves among people of the city and police had not been able to crack the case until Sabauddin's arrest in Lucknow.

Sabauddin had undergone advanced training in handling all kinds of weapons and explosives and commando training, he said.

Hosur said Sabauddin had confessed to surveying IISc campus a day prior to the attack.