Bengaluru, April 05: Two men have been arrested for attempting to extort Rs 2 crore from a 68-year-old businessman-politician from Ballari, Karnataka, by threatening to leak alleged sex videos. The accused, Ajay Pavenahalli and Abhi, both in their 20s and residents of Davanagere, claimed they possessed compromising videos of the complainant and threatened to circulate them online and to news channels.
The complainant, who had contested the 2018 Karnataka Assembly elections as an independent candidate, lodged a complaint with the Koramangala police last month. On February 27, Ajay contacted him and met him at a hotel near Davanagere court, along with Abhi. The duo claimed to have videos of him in a compromising situation and demanded Rs 2 crore in exchange for not releasing them. Mumbai: Man Forcefully Grabs and Kisses Girl, Records Video of Incident To Blackmail Her; Arrested.
On March 14, they sent a few clips via WhatsApp, which the complainant said appeared morphed. The next day, the blackmailers asked him to pay in Bengaluru. Hoping to trap them, he invited them to the city under the pretense of making the payment. Maharashtra Shocker: Man Rapes 17-Year-Old Girl, Shares Sex Assault Video on WhatsApp in Bhiwandi; 3 Including Another Minor Girl Arrested for Blackmail.
Ajay arrived in Bengaluru on March 17 and reiterated the demand. The complainant stalled the meeting and later filed a police complaint. The blackmailers eventually reduced their demand to Rs 40 lakh, but both were arrested before receiving any payment.
A senior officer said the accused likely used a video featuring a man resembling the complainant. Police suspect the complainant’s former driver may also be involved, as he has since gone missing. Investigations are ongoing to trace his whereabouts and uncover the full extent of the extortion plan.
(The above story first appeared on Today News 24 on Apr 05, 2025 07:20 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website todaynews24.top).
//vdo //(function(v,d,o,ai){ai=d.createElement('script');ai.defer=true;ai.async=true;ai.src=v.location.protocol+o;d.head.appendChild(ai);})(window, document, '//a.vdo.ai/core/latestly/vdo.ai.js');
//colombai try{ (function() { var cads = document.createElement("script"); cads.async = true; cads.type = "text/javascript"; cads.src = "https://static.clmbtech.com/ase/80185/3040/c1.js"; var node = document.getElementsByTagName("script")[0]; node.parentNode.insertBefore(cads, node); })(); }catch(e){}
} });