Gang of six arrested for honey trap scam in Bengaluru

The accused would advertise on dating apps, offering escorts, to lure men and blackmail them by recording their videos

The accused would lure men by advertising escort services on dating apps. | Photo Credit: Shaju John

Begur police arrested six persons who were allegedly luring men on the pretext of offering escorts and then blackmailing them with videos.

The accused have been identified as Anil Kumar, 37, a cloth merchant from T. Narasipura in Mysuru; Shivashankar, 50, a goods vehicle driver from Bytarayanapura; Girish Gangenahalli, 36, an assistant of an advocate at Tumakuru; and Ramamurthy, 37, from Rajajinagar in Bengaluru. The identity of two women has not been disclosed.

According to the police, the accused would advertise on dating apps, offering escorts, to lure men. They would record videos of their victims, and then blackmail them to extort money.

Srinivasalu Reddy, 39, a private firm employee, was one of their victims. He was invited to a house. The accused recorded a video before barging into the house and blackmailing him.

The accused allegedly forced him to call his friends with a plea to transfer ₹2.9 lakh to his account. Eventually, Srinivasalu Reddy managed to transfer ₹10,000 to their account online.

The accused allowed him to leave after threatening to post the video on social media if he revealed the incident to anyone. Initially, Srinivasalu Reddy was scared, but later he decided to approach the police and file a complaint.

Based on the complaint, the police tracked down the gang and arrested the accused.