NIA arrests two from Karnataka, one from Kochi for naval spying for Pakistan’s ISI
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Three individuals, two from Karnataka and one from Kochi in Kerala have been arrested by the National Investigation Agency for leaking sensitive and classified naval defence information to Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) in the case known as the Visakhapatnam espionage case.
The agency took Vethan Laxman Tandel and Akshay Ravi Naik into custody from Karnataka’s Uttara Kannada district, while Abhilash P A was apprehended in Kochi, Kerala, The Indian Express reported.
According to the NIA, the accused were in contact with Pakistani intelligence operatives through social media and had shared classified details about Indian defence establishments at the Karwar and Kochi naval bases in exchange for financial incentives.
The NIA has already charged five others, including Akash Solanki, Manmohan Surendra Panda, and Amaan Salim Shaikh, alongside absconding Pakistani spies Meer Balaj Khan and Alven.
The case was initially registered in 2021 by the Andhra Pradesh Counter Intelligence Cell before being transferred to the NIA two years later.