Indian police arrest two alleged Pakistani spies

Indian police arrest two alleged Pakistani spies

2011-12-14 16:46:29 GMT+7 (ICT)

NEW DELHI (BNO NEWS) -- Indian police arrested two Pakistani nationals earlier this month on suspicion of spying for the Pakistani intelligence services, local media reported on Wednesday.

The two Pakistanis, one man and one woman, were arrested on December 5 at the New Delhi Railway Station after arriving there from the town of Gorakhpur on the India-Nepal border. The suspects were identified as Imran, 40, and Soofia Kanwal, 38, both from Karachi.

"The two were arrested on a tip-off. They said they had entered India through the Indo-Nepal border," deputy police commissioner Ashok Chand told the Hindustan Times.

Imran reportedly told police that he was born in the western Indian city of Ahmedabad, but had migrated to Pakistan in 1988 where he acquired citizenship. After his company incurred huge losses in 2007-2008, Pakistani intelligence agencies approached him and said they would pay him if he worked for them, according to Chand.

"In March 2011, they told him that he would have to go to India and settle a woman as a resident agent there," Chand told the newspaper.

Police sources said Imran was looking for a safe hideout in Agra and was in touch with someone. "They have a marriage certificate, which would have helped them get a rented accommodation. We are looking for their third associate, who is in Agra," a senior officer said on the condition of anonymity.

The two were remanded in custody for at least 14 days as an investigation continues.

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