Sextortion gang impersonating as cops busted, one held
Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 16 May, 2022 03:38 PM
New Delhi, May 16 (IANS) A Mewat-based gang, impersonating as Crime Branch sleuths and legal officials of YouTube, has been busted by Delhi Police for extorting money from gullible people by honey-trapping them.
The police have arrested one person in connection with the case, who has been identified as Asib Khan (26), a resident of Bharatpur district in Rajasthan, the police said.
Furnishing details, Deputy Commissioner of Police (north), Sagar Singh Kalsi, said some complaints were received on the MHA's Cyber Crime Portal regarding extortion by fake Crime Branch and YouTube officials on the pretext of lodging police complaints over obscene videos of victims and uploading of the same on YouTube.
Accordingly, the police registered an FIR under Section 384 (Punishment for extortion) of the Indian Penal Code at the cyber police station in the north district.
After lodging a case, a police team was constituted which conducted money trails and mounted technical surveillance/analysis of the mobile phone numbers linked to various mobile wallets.
The investigation revealed that the accused were operating from Mudiya village in Bharatpur district.
Subsequently, the police conducted a raid and detained Asib Khan.
"His mobile phone was checked. It was revealed that he was operating a fake bank account using internet banking," the DCP said.
Further analysis of bank statements disclosed that Rs 26 lakh were credited and then instantly debited from this account within one month.
Thereafter, it was found that one person, a resident of Sarai Rohilla, Delhi, was being extorted. The police then registered another case of extortion and arrested the accused Asib Khan.
During interrogation, it was revealed that several youth from Asib Khan's village would create fake Facebook profiles of girls and contact victims on WhatsApp after exchanging mobile numbers via Facebook Messenger.
The victims would receive WhatsApp video calls in which a pre-recorded video of a lady doing an obscene act would be played and this video would appear on the mobile screen of the victims. The accused caller then screen-recorded the video of the victim indulging in obscene acts.
They used to then blackmail the victims posing as officials from the Crime Branch and YouTube's legal team.
Indian defence forces have employed the best equipment available in the country to locate the wreckage, which includes remotely operated underwater vehicles, handheld navigation system with sonar, side scanner sonar with echo sensor and portable transducer, divers propulsion vehicle, multi-beam sonar and submarine rescue unit of the India Navy, an official statement said.
The convicts are Shaik Showkath, 35, Mohd Khalid, 22, Mohd Afroz, 20, Abdul Salman Khan, 20, Shaik Salman, 22, and Mujahid Khan, 20. They are all residents of New Hafeezpet, Serilingampally Mandal, Ranga Reddy district.
A Northern Railway spokesperson said that due to farmers agitation in Ferozpur division of Punjab, it has cancelled 68 train including two Vande Bharat and Rajdhani each, four Shatabdi Express, one Duranto, and two Janshatabdi Express trains.
According to police, the robbers, coming out of the Amruth Gold and Silver shop after the crime, saw Chandru approach and opened fire at him, fearing he may try to apprehend them or alert the public. One of the bullets hit Chandru on the head and he died on the spot.
The Vigilance Bureau arrested Saini, who retired in June 2018, for cheating, forgery and other offences under provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act on Wednesday.
To be headed by the Chief Minister, the group will have Local Government Minister Brahm Mohindra, Finance Minister Manpreet Singh Badal and Social Security Minister Aruna Chaudhary as members, along with Sidhu, the four party working presidents -- Kuljit Singh Nagra, Sukhwinder Singh Danny, Sangat Singh Gilzian and Pawan Goel, besides Pargat Singh.
