3 youths arrested for threatening to release obscene video of girl, demanding Rs 20 lakh from father

KARWAR: Three youths, who attempted to extort a Bhatkal vegetable trader of Rs 20 lakh, by threatening to release private photos and videos of his daughter, have been arrested and jailed.

The  trader, a resident of Kidwai Road, Bhattgaon, was in a shop when he received a call from an unknown person on the night of August 16 and threatened him, demanding Rs 20 lakh in exchange for not sharing the alleged private content. The caller later reduced the demand to Rs 15 lakh when he spoke to the trader’s wife on August 18. The panicked couple immediately complained to the police.

The Bhatkal City Police, led by Inspector Diwakar and PSI Naveen Nayak, formed a special team and tracked down the accused Mohammed Faris, Mohammed Arshad, and Aman, all engineering students. They were arrested, produced before a court and remanded to judicial custody.

The police investigation revealed that the accused had been stalking the trader’s family and had gathered personal information to use for extortion. The case highlights the growing concern over cybercrime and online harassment in the region.