West Bengal STF Arrests Third Suspect In Alleged Espionage Network Linked To JeM Operative

The arrest followed leads obtained during the interrogation of Mondal and his alleged associate Arpita Sarkar, taking the total number of arrests in the case to three.

The West Bengal STF on Monday arrested Aditya Singh alias Raj alias Raju from Howrah in connection with an alleged espionage network linked to suspected JeM operative Hamim Mondal.

Source : PTI

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Key points generated by AI, verified by newsroom

• STF arrested Aditya Singh for alleged espionage network links.
• Singh allegedly surveilled Minister Umesh Rai and his son.
• Police investigate network's activities, potential Independence Day terror.

Kolkata, Aug 3 (PTI) The West Bengal Special Task Force (STF) on Monday arrested another suspected associate of alleged Jaish-e-Mohammed operative Hamim Mondal from Howrah in connection with an ongoing probe into an alleged espionage network, a senior officer said.

The accused, identified as Aditya Singh alias Raj alias Raju, was apprehended from Belilious Road in neighbouring Howrah following leads obtained during the interrogation of Mondal and his alleged associate, Arpita Sarkar, he said.

"The latest arrest was made based on specific leads that emerged during the investigation. We are now focused on identifying others linked to the alleged network. So far we have arrested three persons in this connection," a senior STF officer said, without divulging further details.

Investigators suspect Aditya came in contact with Mondal through an online gaming platform and was subsequently drawn into the alleged conspiracy.

According to the STF officer, Mondal allegedly used the opportunity to brainwash Aditya and draw him into his network.

"Mondal assigned him the task to keep a close watch on Minister of State for Urban Development Umesh Rai and his son. He is suspected to have collected information related to them and shared it with the accused," the STF official said.

Giving more details about the role of the arrested accused, the official said Aditya is suspected to have photographed the movements of Rai and sent them to Mondal.

"We are investigating whether they were planning to target the minister," he said.

"The investigation is at a crucial stage. We are trying to ascertain the role played by each individual and identify the entire chain of communication. Information gathered during interrogation will help us understand the network and its activities in detail," he said.

The officer said the STF was also trying to find out if the accused were planning to carry out any terror strike in the run-up to Independence Day celebrations.

"Our priority is to unearth all possible links. We are examining every piece of evidence collected during the investigation," he said. 

(Disclaimer: This report has been published as part of the auto-generated syndicate wire feed. Apart from the headline, no editing has been done in the copy by ABP Live.)