Nagpur — Nagpur Police have busted an alleged sextortion syndicate that targeted wealthy men through dating applications, secretly recorded intimate video calls and then allegedly used false harassment complaints to extort crores of rupees, police said. The alleged mastermind, 35-year-old Aditya Gupta, was arrested on Wednesday, according to police.
Source: LatestLY
According to investigators, Gupta allegedly recruited financially vulnerable young women by promising them payments of Rs 4 lakh to Rs 5 lakh. The women were allegedly instructed to create profiles on dating applications, including one called Mika, contact wealthy men, engage them in intimate video calls and secretly record the conversations. The recorded footage was then allegedly used to blackmail the men.
Source: LatestLY
Fake complaints used as leverage, police allege
Police allege that Gupta posed as an influential legal adviser and social activist who helped women facing harassment. He would allegedly approach police with the recorded footage and push for FIRs alleging sexual harassment and rape against the targeted men, then use the legal proceedings as leverage to demand substantial sums in exchange for settling the matter and withdrawing the complaints. These are police allegations; they have not been proved in court.
Source: LatestLY
The alleged racket came under the scanner when Gupta allegedly attempted to extort Rs 3 crore — yaani 3 crore rupees, or 30 million rupees — from a man identified as Irfan, police said. Investigators, suspicious of Gupta's unusually active involvement in such cases, initially pretended to cooperate with him, then contacted Irfan, brought him to Nagpur and, after taking him into confidence, uncovered the alleged plot, according to the police account.
Source: LatestLY
Police arrested Gupta and seized his mobile phone, which reportedly contained more than 400 explicit videos. Investigators are examining the scale of the operation, including how many women were allegedly recruited and how many men were targeted across cities such as Delhi, Pune and Nagpur. Two cases are currently registered against Gupta in Nagpur, and police are gathering details of cases allegedly linked to him in other metropolitan cities.
Source: AirNews
Gupta, who is originally from Agra, was living in Pune when he was arrested, police said. According to investigators, he left his family around five years ago, moved to Maharashtra and allegedly built the network, living a lavish lifestyle with luxury cars and five-star hotel stays. Police said he allegedly used a morphed photograph featuring senior political leaders as his WhatsApp profile picture to project influence, and that he also faced a theft case filed by his own brother in Agra. Nagpur Deputy Commissioner of Police Rahul Madane said the investigation is under way to establish the full extent of the alleged racket and identify everyone involved.
Source: LatestLY