NIA files charge-sheet against ISI agent in Visakhapatnam espionage case

The accused-- Yakub Giteli aka Giteli Imran, a resident of Godhra in Panchmahal district of Gujarat, has been booked under sections 120 B and 201 of IPC and section 17 and 18 of the UA(P)A before the Vijayavada NIA Special Court for his involvement in raising funds for espionage activities in India.

The case was initially registered as FIR No. 01/2019 dated November 16, 2019 under sections 120B & 121A of IPC, Section 17 and 18 of The UA (P) Act, 1967 and Section 3 of The Official Secrets Act, 1923 at Intelligence Department in Vijayawada pertaining to conspiracy hatched by Pakistani ISI agents along with their associates based in India to carry out terrorist acts in India.

In furtherance of their conspiracy, they were involved in espionage activities by collecting sensitive and classified official information relating to vital Defence installations in order to threaten the integrity, security and sovereignty of India.

NIA took over this case on December 12, 2019 and filed a filed charge sheet against 14 accused persons including three civilians with business interests in Pakistan on June 15 last year.

During the course of investigation, it was established that the accused was in contact with Pakistani agents and used to meet them during his visits to Pakistan.

“On the instructions of Pakistani ISI agents, he was transferring money into the accounts of Navy personnel in lieu of passing sensitive and strategic information”, the officials in NIA said.

He was raising funds for terrorist activities under the garb of illegal cloth business and in this guise he organised a wide network of Pakistan based espionage activities in India utilizing services of operatives like Imran Yakub Giteli, the officials further said, adding that further investigation in the case was under progress.