Overview

• The 27-year-old engineer was arrested on May 29 by the Maharashtra ATS and on June 5 was remanded to 14-day judicial custody after a court denied the ATS’s request for extended custody.
• The ATS alleges that Verma knowingly exchanged sketches, diagrams and audio notes on Indian warships and submarines for payments routed through bank accounts in India and abroad.
• Investigators say a Pakistani operative honey-trapped Verma on Facebook by posing as a woman under aliases such as Preeti Jaiswal and Jaspreet to solicit classified information.
• The espionage network employed forged Indian SIM cards linked to WhatsApp and Telegram profiles featuring Hindu deity images to mask the origin of communications.
• The ATS is analyzing fresh evidence as it broadens the probe into the ring’s sophisticated cyber-enabled tactics against naval personnel.