Joint statement from the Shin Bet and Police spokespeople: The Shin Bet and the Israel Police arrested a resident of Netivot who carried out surveillance and photography missions on infrastructure and security sites in Israel.
In a joint operation by the General Security Service and Cyber Lahav 433 in the Israel Police, Edward Yusupov, 65, a resident of Netivot, was arrested during February after being suspected of committing security offenses involving contact with elements from an enemy country and carrying out missions directed by them, for a fee of tens of thousands of dollars.
The Shin Bet and police investigation revealed that starting last October, Yusupov had been in contact with an element who identified himself to him as an Azerbaijani citizen living in Dubai, and had carried out numerous missions for him, including surveillance and photography missions related to infrastructure and security sites in Israel, including IDF bases, the Haifa port, and the refineries in Haifa and the Nuclear Research Center.
The investigation also reveals that Yusupov rented an apartment in Haifa, overlooking the Haifa Port, at the direction of his Azerbaijani operator. This was with the aim of using it as an apartment for operational needs for his operator and those hostile elements with whom he was in contact.
