Punjab man arrested for spying, installing CCTV camera on highway to share Army movements with Pakistan
The accused, Baljit Singh, alias Bittu, installed the camera along the Pathankot-Jammu stretch of National Highway 44, raising serious national security concerns
In Punjab's Pathankot, police have arrested Baljit Singh, also known as Bittu, for allegedly installing a CCTV camera on the Pathankot-Jammu stretch of National Highway 44 to transmit sensitive information about army and paramilitary movements to operatives in Pakistan and abroad, with the feed reportedly sent electronically to individuals in Pakistan and overseas. Singh confessed to installing the camera in January at a shop near a bridge, receiving Rs 40,000 and directions from an unknown contact in Dubai, and a WiFi router was recovered alongside the camera; this arrest followed intelligence about suspicious activity and has led to a case registered against four individuals, including Singh, with further investigations aimed at uncovering the network's cross-border connections and funding sources, a development that echoes previous busts of Pakistan's ISI-backed espionage modules using similar high-tech surveillance equipment.
In Punjab's Pathankot, police have arrested Baljit Singh, also known as Bittu, for allegedly installing a CCTV camera on the Pathankot-Jammu stretch of National Highway 44 to transmit sensitive information about army and paramilitary movements to operatives in Pakistan and abroad, with the feed reportedly sent electronically to individuals in Pakistan and overseas. Singh confessed to installing the camera in January at a shop near a bridge, receiving Rs 40,000 and directions from an unknown contact in Dubai, and a WiFi router was recovered alongside the camera; this arrest followed intelligence about suspicious activity and has led to a case registered against four individuals, including Singh, with further investigations aimed at uncovering the network's cross-border connections and funding sources, a development that echoes previous busts of Pakistan's ISI-backed espionage modules using similar high-tech surveillance equipment.
In Punjab's Pathankot, police have arrested Baljit Singh, also known as Bittu, for allegedly installing a CCTV camera on the Pathankot-Jammu stretch of National Highway 44 to transmit sensitive information about army and paramilitary movements to operatives in Pakistan and abroad, with the feed reportedly sent electronically to individuals in Pakistan and overseas. Singh confessed to installing the camera in January at a shop near a bridge, receiving Rs 40,000 and directions from an unknown contact in Dubai, and a WiFi router was recovered alongside the camera; this arrest followed intelligence about suspicious activity and has led to a case registered against four individuals, including Singh, with further investigations aimed at uncovering the network's cross-border connections and funding sources, a development that echoes previous busts of Pakistan's ISI-backed espionage modules using similar high-tech surveillance equipment.
A CCTV camera was installed along the Pathankot-Jammu stretch of National Highway 44, allegedly to track the movement of army and paramilitary forces and share sensitive information with Pakistan. The police in Punjab's Pathankot arrested Baljit Singh, aka Bittu, a resident of Chakk Dhariwal village, in connection with the incident.
According to the police, the CCTV camera was installed at a shop near a bridge on the Pathankot-Jammu stretch on the highway.
Senior police officer Daljinder Singh Dhillon said that the surveillance feed was transmitted electronically to operatives based in Pakistan and abroad.
Singh confessed that he installed the camera at the shop on the highway in January. He was given Rs 40, 000 and was getting directions from an unknown person in Dubai.
Police had recovered an internet WiFi router along with the camera.
Police received intelligence regarding suspicious activity along the Pathankot-Jammu stretch, which led to the arrest of Bittu. Subsequently, the Sujanpur police registered a case against four individuals: Vikramjit Singh alias Vikka, Balwinder Singh alias Vicky, and Taranpreet Singh alias Tannu.
Further investigation is underway to map the cross-border linkages of the network and trace the source of funding behind the alleged espionage.
The Punjab Police last month busted two espionage modules backed by Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) that used high-tech, China-made, solar-powered CCTV cameras to transmit live feeds of sensitive military locations to handlers across the border.