A Wing Commander of the Indian Air Force (IAF) has been arrested by the Delhi Police for sharing classified and sensitive defence-related information with a woman, said sources on Saturday.
According to Delhi Police sources, the officer was arrested on May 30 after being booked under the Official Secrets Act (OSA). He is currently under judicial custody and a charge sheet was submitted before competent court on July 30 after completion of the investigation. The matter is sub-judice.
"Based upon a complaint by the Indian Air Force authorities, a serving air force officer was arrested on May 30 on allegations of being honey-trapped by a Pakistani intelligence operative," the charge sheet said.
Chats, photographs, video calls and more
The IAF official, whose identity has not been revealed, was honey-trapped by a woman who contacted him through social media, the sources told India TV, while adding that the two even used to communicate through chats and video calls.
Investigators found that the woman had asked the officer to share details regarding the movement of troops and their deployment. She also asked for photographs, videos and other sensitive information.
Sources said the accused allegedly shared sensitive documents and details with the woman through digital channels.
A suspicious app and a Pakistan connection
Sources told India TV that the woman, who was suspectedly working at the behest of Pakistan's notorious spy agency Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), also got the accused officer download a suspicious data-stealing app on a colleague's mobile phone, which appeared to function like spyware or remote-access malware.
Investigators believe that the app or the software was used to steal and collect data from a mobile, track its location or intercept the conversations. They are now investigating about what details were shared by the accused officer with the woman, examining the digital trail of their conversations.
Further, they are also probing if the case is linked to a suspected espionage network, sources said, while pointing out that the IAF official and woman had been in touch with each other for the past couple of years.
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