HYDERABAD: Two youngsters identified as Arepally Abhishek and B. Abhinash, involved in a series of extortion cases were arrested by Siddipet police on Tuesday.
The two, impersonated as women, trapped victims through the Sharechat platform, exchanged nude content and later threatened to make them public. In the past two years, they contacted 18,000 persons and blocked 5,000 numbers. It is suspected that after looting money or after finding that they are of no use to them, they have blocked these numbers, the police said.
The accused used multiple SIM cards, and bank accounts to extort money from the victims, said Siddipet police commissioner N. Swetha.
Inquiries revealed that the two had been in this business for the past couple of years. Impersonating as women, they first start conversations with men on Sharechat and then exchange lewd messages and obscene pictures. Later using them, they blackmail men and try to extort money from them. It is suspected the victims could be spread all over the state. “They are not concerned about the region or language. If they find someone vulnerable, they loot them and block their numbers. They also block numbers of persons who pay money. But due to social stigma, there are not many complaints against them,” police said.
In one of the cases, the accused first trapped a youngster and started blackmailing him for money. Later, they posed as police officials and demanded money to close a case.
