BHUBANESWAR: As more information emerges from the latest espionage scam to hit the DRDO’s Integrated Test Range (ITR) at Chandipur, the senior officer, who was arrested on Friday for passing off sensitive information to a suspected Pakistani woman agent, has been found to be in constant touch with her for over a year.The technical officer in the telemetry section of the ITR Baburam Dey, of Jaleswar in Balasore district, had allegedly been honey-trapped by the woman, who used to regularly send her intimate photos and videos.
Police said, he had been in touch with the woman for over a year through various social networking platforms. He had allegedly shared sensitive information to her in exchange of pornographic content.
Preliminary investigations indicated that Dey was sharing information to the woman agent on social networking sites. “The duo’s chats on WhatsApp, Messenger and other social media sites suggest that they were in contact for over a year. He was speaking with the woman operative almost every day after his duty hours,” said a senior police official.
The police have seized Dey’s mobile phone and his chats with the foreign agent. “No employee is permitted to carry his/her mobile phone inside the prohibited areas of DRDO. The accused was possibly carrying his device covertly and capturing the sensitive information,” the official said.
Police suspect he might have shared information on the performance of various missiles. He had allegedly been carrying his phone to the telemetry section that tracks missiles during developmental tests. He was also in contact with DRDO scientists and was aware about sensitive technical information related to missile launches. He even used to receive information in advance related to testing of missiles.
Meanwhile, the police have traced two accounts of the accused in SBI and Axis. They will request the two banks and the Centre’s Financial Intelligence Unit to share information about his accounts and financial transactions with the operative.
The police have also requested Jaleswar tehsildar to share information related to Dey’s immovable assets. The accused has been brought on four-day police remand on Saturday for further questioning. However, Dey’s family members have claimed that he is innocent and it was a conspiracy to frame him.