A court in Baleswar granted permission to the Crime Branch (CB) to take the five DRDO employees arrested from the Integrated Test Range (ITR), Chandipur, on remand for a week in connection with the espionage case.
The CB had prayed before the Baleswar SDJM Court permission for a seven-day remand of the accused for thorough interrogation into the case.
With grant of permission for remand, a special team of the Crime Branch brought the accused to Cuttack from Baleswar district.
“The Crime Branch will investigate into the case from all angles. The arrested accused persons will be questioned to ascertain whether any other person was involved in the case. Besides, what are the financial transactions involved. The NIA can interrogate the accused persons in the case. But though they are looking into the case they are not investigating into it, said Crime Branch ADG Sanjeeb Panda.
A Cyber police station Inspector and a Sub-Inspector would help the CB team in the investigations. If required more teams would be formed, added Panda.
When asked if the CB has identified the woman, who had honey-trapped the accused, the ADG said investigations are ongoing and it would not be possible to share all the details now.
So far, five employees of the DRDO have been arrested for allegedly leaking secrets to a foreign country agent. The accused are Basanta Behera (52), AC operator; Hemanta Kumar Mistri (52), diesel genset operator; Tapas Ranjan Nayak (41), employee at ITR main gate; Sk. Musafir (32), AC operator; and Sachin Kumar, a driver.