Major crimes detective questioned on suspicion of contact with Iranian agent |
A police detective in the Lahav 433 major crimes unit was questioned on suspicion of contact with an Iranian agent, the Department of Internal Police Investigations (DIPI) announced Wednesday.
The officer, a man in his 40s, is suspected of having interacted with a foreign agent seeking to recruit him as a spy for the Iranian government, according to Hebrew media outlets.
He was detained for questioning Tuesday night by investigators in the DIPI, a State Attorney’s Office body that probes police officers suspected of criminal activity.
He was placed under house arrest following his interrogation.
The case was opened after investigators were informed by Lahav 433 of the alleged contact between one of its officers and an Iranian agent. The probe is ongoing, the agency said.
According to the Kan public broadcaster, the policeman claimed he started communicating with the agent unknowingly after receiving a message from him over the Telegram messaging app about a job offer.
When he was asked to record videos in different locations, the officer reportedly began suspecting the user was an Iranian agent and immediately informed his superiors, who ordered him to stop corresponding with the Telegram........