COIMBATORE: In a major counter-espionage breakthrough, a 31-year-old Indian Navy sailor was arrested in Coimbatore on Saturday for leaking sensitive defence information to a female Pakistani intelligence operative, who lured him into a honeytrap.
The Counter Intelligence (CI) Cell of Andhra Pradesh police arrested Pradeep Mukherjee of West Bengalhile he was attending a management development course at INS Agrani, a premier naval leadership training establishment at Red Fields in Coimbatore. The Counter Intelligence (CI) Cell of Andhra Pradesh police — an elite wing focused on neutralizing terror modules, cross-border espionage and high-security threats — placed Pradeep Mukherjee under surveillance after detecting suspicious digital footprints. Local police officials were formally informed about the arrest. Investigators subsequently produced the sailor before a local magistrate to secure a transit warrant before taking him to the Counter Intelligence headquarters in Vijayawada in the evening for further custodial interrogation.
A specialized CI team arrived at INS Agrani, Coimbatore, on Saturday morning and took him into custody.