DRDO Espionage Case: Odisha Police to contact Interpol to track down a mysterious woman handler
The Odisha Police, which is investigating the espionage case at DRDO's Interim Test Range (ITR) said it will take the help of Interpol through central agencies to reach the "mysterious woman" who had allegedly engaged five test range employees in leaking defence information to a foreign agent.
The Additional Director General of Odisha Police crime branch, Sanjeev Panda said the photograph of the woman operative has been obtained along with her video footage from video calls with the accused persons.
"We will establish contact with the Interpol to track down the mysterious lady handler who had been eliciting information from the five accused," he said.
The probe agency has obtained proof that the "mysterious woman" had managed to hack the mobile phone of one of the accused for around eight months and kept tab on his activities. She had also managed to steal vital information about the ITR, Chandipur, Mr Panda said.
The Odisha may seek further custody of the five accused persons, who are now in judicial custody, after verification of certain documents, he added.
One of the accused has received Rs 38,000 in two installments from Dubai. "However, we have to establish whether the money came from the bank account of the woman or from someone else," he said.
The woman had used a UK SIM card to contact the five employees of the Defense Research and Development Organisation who were arrested on September 14 and 16 for allegedly passing on vital defense related information to foreign agencies in lieu of money and other promises, including that of marriage.
The woman posing as a resident of Balasore district spoke to the five accused, unknown to each other and stayed connected with them using seven Facebook accounts under different names, besides WhatsApp, Mr Panda had said earlier.
She frequently video-called two of the accused and even gave marriage proposals to them. The woman had also invited one of them to "her residence" in Chandipur, he had said on the alleged honey-trap angle to the espionage case.
Meanwhile, the intelligence wing of the Indian Air Force has interrogated the five accused persons during their police remand. Two National Investigating Agency officers had visited the ITR and discussed the issue of security at the DRDO establishment from where major missiles are test fired.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)