Mumbai: Student Arrested for Blackmail and Extortion in Obscene Video case

Juhu police have arrested a student named Ashish Swami, hailing from Rajasthan, in connection with a case involving an explicit video. The arrest was made following allegations of blackmail and ransom demands against a young man residing in Vile Parle. The 30-year-old victim, employed at a private firm, encountered the accused through a dating app under the guise of a friendship with someone named Soni. During their interactions, Soni initiated a video call where the victim witnessed a girl disrobing.Sensing something suspicious, the complainant ended the call.

A little while later, she called him again, and this time the girl was making obscene gestures at him. Consequently, he deleted her mobile number. Following this incident, an unknown person called him, claiming to be a CBI officer. The caller said that an obscene video of him with the girl had been uploaded on YouTube, a case had been filed against him, and he would be arrested.

The caller told the complainant that if he wanted to avoid arrest and get the video deleted from YouTube, he would have to pay ₹50,000. Fearing disgrace and arrest, the victim sent the amount. Subsequently, the caller continued to blackmail him, demanding more money by threatening to ruin his reputation.

Following this incident, the complainant reported his ordeal to the Juhu police. Based on his complaint, the police registered a case of extortion and under IT provisions. During the investigation, it was found that the money was deposited in Ashish Swami's bank account. A special team from Juhu police went to Rajasthan to gather information about this bank account. With the help of the local police, the team arrested Ashish Swami from the Alwar area. The investigation revealed that he had provided his bank account to the accused for fraudulent activities. Once the money was collected, he withdrew it from an ATM and handed it over to his accomplices. The police said that Ashish is currently studying and is a college student. Names of his other accomplices have surfaced in connection with these crimes, and the police have now launched a special operation to arrest them.