The National Investigation Agency on Saturday conducted searches at various locations in Tamil Nadu as part of its investigation into the alleged Ansarullah terror module, PTI reported. The searches were carried out in Chennai, Madurai, Tirunelveli and Ramanathapuram districts, the police said.

The searches, which went on for four hours, did not yield much, The Hindu reported. The investigators seized some school certificates, copies of driving licences and other “insignificant” documents.

The searches came a day after a Special National Investigation Agency court gave the agency eight-day custody of 16 suspects arrested for allegedly trying to set up the Ansarullah terror outfit. The NIA said it needed to take the suspects to various locations to verify the evidence collected against them.

The NIA told the court that the accused supported the Al-Qaeda and Islamic State terror outfits. The agency had arrested 14 people last week after Saudi Arabia deported them to India. Two other suspects were picked up from Tamil Nadu on July 13.