Responding to a message from an unknown number proved to be costly for a 45-year-old woman from Mumbai. The person at the other end first convinced her to send compromising photographs of herself and began to extort money from her. The Mumbai Police Crime Branch has identified the culprit as an Indian working in Qatar, and arrested his Mumbai-based accomplice.
According to Crime Branch officers, the woman, a resident of Antop Hill, received a text message on WhatsApp saying ‘Hi’ on July 15. The woman responded to the message and within minutes, she was having a full-fledged conversation with the person at the other end. “From July 15 to July 23, the complainant and the accused chatted frequently, to the point that he even convinced her to send him some pictures of herself in compromising positions. Immediately after she did so, the accused started blackmailing her, asking for ₹30,000. He told her he would post her pictures on social media as well as harm her family members if she did not comply,” a Crime Branch officer said.
Sufiyan Khan
On Tuesday, the woman finally approached the Antop Hill police and registered a complaint. The Crime Branch Unit IV was instructed to conduct parallel investigations into the matter.
“The accused kept demanding money and the complainant, acting on our instructions, expressed willingness to pay the amount. The accused told her to come to Kurla railway station with the money on Thursday and she complied,” the officer said.
Unknown to the accused, a team of Unit IV personnel in plainclothes was shadowing the woman. She was approached by a man in his 20s a few minutes after she reached the station and as soon as he accepted the money, the police took him into custody.
The man, identified as Sufiyan Khan (21), allegedly told police he was acting as a receiver for the main accused, Shaukat Khan.
“Shaukat is from Uttar Pradesh and is working for a private firm in Qatar. Sufiyan hails from the same village in UP and stays in Taximen’s Colony in Kurla. Investigations indicate that this is not the first time the duo have pulled off a crime like this, as we have found messages sent to at least one other woman from Sufiyan’s phone. However, that message received no response,” the officer said.
Sufiyan has been charged with extortion and criminal intimidation under the Indian Penal Code along with relevant sections of the Information Technology Act, and has been remanded in police custody till July 29. Meanwhile, the police will soon start the process of seeking Shaukat’s extradition from the authorities in the UAE, officers said.
