Udupi: A 19-year-old man from Rajasthan has been arrested for allegedly blackmailing a complainant and extorting over ₹4.44 lakh by threatening to circulate a morphed obscene video.
How the extortion took place
According to Udupi SP Hariram Shankar, the complainant was first contacted on Facebook by a woman, who later initiated a video call. Within minutes, an obscene morphed video showing the complainant’s image was created and sent to his WhatsApp account.
The accused then threatened to upload the video on social media unless money was paid. Fearing embarrassment, the complainant transferred ₹4,44,999.97 in multiple transactions to the extortionists.
Police action and FIR
A case was registered at the Udupi CEN police station under:
- Sections 308(2) and 318(4) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS)
- Section 66(E) of the IT Act
Arrest of the accused
Acting on directions from SP Hariram Shankar, Additional SP Sudhakar Nayak, and Karkala DySP Dr Harsha Priyamvada, a special team under CEN Police Inspector Ramachandra Nayak and PSI Harish was formed.
The team apprehended a minor in conflict with the law and arrested the main accused, Zaid Mohammed alias Zaid Khan, son of Deen Dar from Deeg district, Rajasthan.
Police seized five mobile phones and ₹2 lakh in cash from him. Several other suspects remain absconding. The accused was traced and arrested near Margao railway station in Goa after coordinated operations across Rajasthan and Goa, SP Shankar said.
Ongoing investigation
Authorities said investigations are continuing to trace and apprehend the remaining suspects involved in the cyber extortion racket.