A 31-year-old West Bengal-based man has been apprehended by the police for allegedly morphing a picture of a Kalbadevi-based woman and demanding money from her husband. The arrested accused is suspected to be a part of an international extortion syndicate, said the police.
The matter first surfaced in the month of May when the Kalbadevi-based couple approached the police alleging that the husband received an image on WhatsApp, which had the face of his wife attached to a naked body. This was followed by a WhatsApp call where a man threatened the husband to immediately pay ₹14,000, failing which the morphed photo would be sent to everyone on his contact list, including their daughter’s friends. The number from which they received the text and call started from +88 (Bangladesh’s country code) a 13-digit mobile number, the police said.
M2M Sim Card
A 13-digit mobile number is used in M2M Sim Card – Machine2Machine, used in automated machines run on network connectivity.
After registering a first information report (FIR), the police started tracing the locations of the accused and zeroed in on his location somewhere in West Bengal. The suspect Abdul Rahman Hasanur Mandal was arrested from his village in North 24 Parganas district in WB, close to the Indo-Bangladesh border. Mandal ran a money transfer business in his village.
Accused might have got hold of woman's photo using illegal app
Police officials revealed that the accused might have got the woman’s photo by accessing their phone using some app they must have downloaded. However, Mandal's role was limited to lending the group he was working with, his bank account so they could deposit the extortion money. After a successful transaction, all Mandal had to do was withdraw the money and send it to them at the Indo-Bangladesh border, receiving a commission subsequently.
Sextortion case
Mandal is just a pawn in this extortion business, said the police, the top tier consists of criminals mostly in Bangladesh, they added. At the moment they are finding out more about the racket.
Mandal was presented in a local court where he was remanded to police custody till July 26 for further investigation. A case has been registered against him under sections 354 (outraging the modesty of a woman), 354A (sexual harassment), 385 (extortion), and 506 criminal intimidation) among others of the Indian Penal Code and relevant sections of the Information Technology Act.
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