The Halasuru police on Wednesday arrested a 21-year-old Bachelor of Computer Applications (BCA) student who was allegedly blackmailing women he had befriended online after getting his hands on their private photographs. According to the police, the student had created a fake profile of a woman on Instagram and other social media platforms, which he used to strike a friendship with his intended victims.
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“Since September 2021, he has blackmailed 20 women, and was able to access their private photographs. However, his luck ran out when one of the women he targeted approached the police,” said a senior police officer.
Based on her complaint, the police tracked down the youth and charged him for blackmail and extortion under the Indian Penal Code and also and also under various sections of the IT Act. “He had created a fake profile in the name of Pratiksha Bohra on multiple social media platforms,” said the police officer. He befriended women by offering them modelling assignments, and would ask for their private photographs to build their portfolio. To evade suspicion, he even offered to pay the women an advance for their photographs.
However, soon after getting the images, he started blackmailing the women. According to the police, he threatened to upload the images on social media if they failed to pay him.
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The probe revealed that he started the social media accounts during the pandemic last year when various restrictions and curfews were in place. “At first, he befriended women as a pastime. But soon after he succeeded in blackmailing one woman, he began targeting others. Fearing social stigma, many women did not file a police complaint. We are trying to reach out to them to get their statements,” the senior police officer added.