Crossword Genius

Harass spies beginning to turn (6)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

molest

'harass' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)

'spies beginning to turn' is the wordplay.
'spies' becomes 'moles' (mole is a kind of spy).
'beginning to' suggests taking the first letters.
The initial letter of 'turn' is 't'.
'moles'+'t'='MOLEST'

(Other definitions for molest that I've seen before include "trouble" , "Attack sexually" , "Maliciously interfere with" , "Fame" , "Plague" .)

I've seen this clue in The Times.
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