Erode: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) raided a house in this district and detained two youths over suspected links to radical outfits, police said on Wednesday.

Officials of the central agency picked up the two youths at Manickampalayam on Tuesday night and questioned them at the R N Pudur police quarters area in the district.

According to local police, based on the information provided by two persons with suspected terror links who were detained by the NIA recently in Salem, a team of 10 NIA officials visited Erode on Tuesday evening and raided a house at Muniappankoil Street in Manickampalayam Housing Unit where five persons were residing.

The NIA personnel enquired the five persons till Wednesday morning. Later, they took the two youths to the police quarters at R N Pudur, a suburb of Erode, along with some local police personnel. The remaining three persons were kept in a police station in Erode.

Police said the NIA suspected that the two detained men belonged to a radical outfit and the central agency seized laptops, diaries, bank passbooks and some other electronic materials.

The NIA is verifying the seized materials. The identities and other details about the detained persons are under investigation of the NIA, the police added.