Investigation into the alleged case of spying by Ishwar Chandra Behera, a contractual cameraperson of the Interim Test Range (ITR) at Chandipur-on-Sea in Baleswar district, for Pakistani intelligence agency ISI, has been entrusted on the State Crime Branch.The CB took over the probe on the orders of DGP Sanjeev Marik, informed CB ADG BK Sharma in Bhubaneswar on Thursday. He further informed that a three member team of the Crime Branch has already left for Baleswar on Thursday.
The team will take Ishwar Chandra Behera into custody and interrogate him, added Sharma. On Wednesday the Baleswar SDJM court had allowed the local police to take Behera on a seven-day remand for interrogation. Behera was arrested by Baleswar police on January 23 after being put under surveillance for weeks following an intelligence tip-off about his suspicious activities. He was charged with section 120 B (criminal conspiracy), section 121 A (treason) and several counts of the Official Secrets Act.
Behera had been in constant touch with his Kolkata based handler and others, including some based outside the country, and had been passing on highly sensitive information about missile tests to the ISI. Money had been transferred to his SBI account in Chandipur on several occasions in the recent past through money order and internet banking, the IG had said.