The Pune City police have arrested an accused from a village in Rajasthan in connection with the suicide of a 22-year-old student allegedly following a sextortion bid by an online fraudster who threatened to upload his nude video on social media, officers said. This is the second case in which a youth from the state has been arrested in a sextortion case registered in Pune.
According to the police, the victim was found dead at his residence in Tanaji Nagar in Dhankawadi on September 30 last year. His brother lodged a complaint at the Sahkarnagar police station on October 9 following which a First Information Report (FIR) was registered.
Police refused to reveal the identity of the accused saying that further probe is on in the case. “The accused is 22 years old. He belongs to the Raipur Suketi village in Rajasthan’s Bharatpur district on Saturday. Many youngsters from the village are involved in similar online crimes. It was a challenge to nab him. Our team worked hard for over a week in Rajasthan and finally made the arrest,” an official at the station said.
Investigation indicates that the victim came in contact with an online fraudster who used a WhatsApp number with a woman’s photograph. The youth started chatting with the accused believing that the latter was a woman. Police found the deceased had long chats, voice calls and video calls with the accused for about two and a half hours on September 30.
While chatting, the accused allegedly captured a nude video of the victim and then began demanding money from him, the police said. The terrified victim transferred Rs 4,500 via PhonePe in multiple online transactions, but the accused demanded more.
According to investigators, the victim allegedly told the accused that he would die by suicide if he asked for more money, but the accused replied, “Do it, I will circulate the video online.” Soon after, the victim killed himself.
Sahkarnagar police conducted a technical investigation using the mobile phone number used by the accused for committing the crime. The police have booked the accused under sections 306 (abetment of suicide) and 384 (extortion) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and sections of the Information Technology Act.
He was brought to Pune and produced before a magistrate court in Shivajinagar on Sunday. “The court remanded him in police custody till January 21. Probe is on to find out further links of the accused,” an officer said.
Similar case reported in Pune’s Dattawadi area
In November 2021, Pune City police had arrested Anwar Suban Khan, 29, from Gothri Guru village in Lachhmangarh taluka of Rajasthan’s Alwar district in a similar sextortion case. Khan allegedly “masterminded” the crime following which a 19-year-old jumped from the tenth floor of a building in Pune’s Dattawadi area on September 28 last year. Investigation revealed that many youths from Gothri Guru village were trained to carry out “online sextortion”.
The victim in this case came in contact with a “woman” by the name of “Preeti” on Instagram. During the online conversation, the accused took nude videos and photographs of the victim and demanded money from him. The victim paid Rs 4,500 to the accused, but the threats continued and the blackmailer also circulated his photographs on social media, causing the youth to take the extreme step.
