Pathankot: Punjab Police have arrested a 15-year-old boy in Pathankot on charges of spying for Pakistan, officials said. The minor, a native of Samba district in Jammu and Kashmir, was allegedly in contact with Pakistan’s intelligence agency ISI, the Pakistani Army and terror-linked operatives.
Police investigations revealed that the boy’s mobile phone had been hacked by Pakistani agencies, giving them direct access to espionage-related data. Sensitive videos of strategic locations were recovered from the device. Investigators also suspect that the minor was providing live security-related location details through the compromised phone.
During questioning, police found that the boy’s father had passed away earlier. The teenager reportedly believed that his father had been murdered, which led him to become active on various social media platforms. It was during this period that he allegedly came in contact with handlers across the border and was gradually drawn into espionage activities.
Officials said several videos and chat records recorded for spying purposes were recovered from his phone. The boy is suspected to have been involved in spying activities for nearly a year. He had also enrolled in Class 9 during this period. A case has been registered and further investigation is underway.
Providing details of the arrest, Pathankot Senior Superintendent of Police Daljinder Singh Dhillon said the police received specific intelligence inputs that a minor was in touch with a frontal organisation linked to Pakistan’s ISI and was sharing information related to national security. Acting on the tip-off, police arrested the boy during a naka checking operation near the No. 4 bridge in the Sujanpur area on Sunday.
The SSP said the interrogation and forensic examination of the seized mobile phone revealed shocking details. He noted that Pakistani agencies are increasingly targeting minors through social media, exploiting their emotional vulnerability and lack of awareness. According to him, the agencies first establish friendly contact, gradually gain trust and then lure youngsters into networks involving weapons training, logistics and terror modules.
Police further said the boy was also in contact with Pakistan-based gangsters linked to terror modules and was communicating with them frequently. A criminal case has been registered against him. Officials warned that Pakistani agencies are actively attempting to radicalise and recruit youths from border villages for espionage, adding that several young people have already fallen into such traps.
