Police 'traps' gang that honeytrapped men for extortion

Police trapped a gang of four people, including a woman, into its net after complaints were lodged against them for honeytrapping men and blackmailing them with objectionable pictures. Three of the arrested are in their 20s and one in their teens. The group is said to have targetted only men from the IT sector.

According to the police, the 25-year-old woman in the gang, Latha, would target men travelling alone in cabs. She would pretend to look for a lift and then seduce the men into coming to her place. This was done with meticulous planning as the gang zeroed-in on a target and then followed him for days to find the best time and place to execute their plan. 

While Latha lured the man to her house and tempted him to have sex with another woman, her accomplices  Pavan, 24, Raghavendra, 20, and Kiran, 19 would shoot the victim in compromising positions. The video would then be used by the gang to blackmail the victim into giving them more money. 

The modus operandi came to light after one of the victims complained to the police and the they in turn spread a trap of their own. The victim was asked to pay Rs 50,000 and the gang had threatened to upload the video if he failed to pay up. 

Speaking to the Bangalore Mirror, one of the officers said, "The gang had taken away the victim’s mobile phone and had given him another phone for the conversation. The police asked the victim to ask the accused to come near Silk Board. When one of the accused, Kiran, came to the victim unaware of the police presence in mufti, he was caught and subsequently the other gang members were also arrested."

The Begur police, meanwhile, has registered a case in this regard and are investigating.  Latha, allegedly, got separated from her husband and formed a team with her paramour, Kiran, and others. The gang was arrested on Sunday after Central Crime Branch sleuths and the South East division police conducted a joint operation.The police suspect that there are more people involved in the crime and are looking out for more leads. 

• karnataka
• south
• police
• investigation
• gang
• crime
• honeytrap
• sex
• prostitution
• extortion
• blackmail