The Delhi Police has apprehended two people for allegedly blackmailing a Union Minister by making a "sextortion" call. According to the police, the arrested duo had made a video call on WhatsApp to Prahlad Singh Patel, Union Minister of State for Food Processing Industries and Jal Shakti, in June.
As soon as Patel received the call, a pornographic video started playing following which the minister disconnected the call, the police said. Later, the minister received another call from one of the accused threatening to post his video clip on social media.
Accused arrested from Rajasthan
The accused, identified as Mohammad Wakeel and Mohammad Sahib, were arrested from Rajasthan after the minister had reported the matter to the Delhi Police Commissioner in the month of June. The Crime Branch unit of the Delhi Police, which is investigating the matter, is making efforts to arrest other people involved in the scam, said an officer.
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Delhi Police busts sextortion racket
Earlier in May, the Delhi Police had busted a sextortion racket and arrested a 22-year-old man for allegedly extorting over Rs 7 lakh from several people by threatening to post their private chats and videos on social media. The matter came to light after a 27-year-old man, a resident of Shahdara, alleged that in March, he received a WhatsApp video call from an unknown number. On answering the call, he saw a woman engaged in an obscene act, the police said.
The man later started receiving extortion calls from people who introduced themselves as Delhi Police officers. They threatened to circulate the complainant's private pictures online if he did not pay them the said amount, the police said. The victim then transferred a total of Rs 2 lakh to different bank accounts, they added.
(With inputs from PTI)
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