Hyderabad cyber crime cops nab Bengaluru resident for international sextortion scam

Hyderabad: The Cyber Crime Police Station, Detective Department, Hyderabad arrested a person for an alleged sextortion scam targeting people abroad.

The accused has been identified as Riddh Bedi (26), a resident of Brookfield in Bengaluru and he was apprehended by the Cyber Crime Police Station, Detective Department, for his involvement in a well-organised fraud scheme using dating websites to lure victims into compromising situations and extort money.

Case details

As per police records, the complainant reported that his son residing in California, USA was blackmailed and extorted for $1,721 by the accused.

The accused posed as a woman on a dating platform and lured the victim into sharing personal information and sensitive images. Using this information, the accused threatened to expose the victim to his social circle unless a ransom was paid.

The victim made several transactions to an Indian mobile number linked to bank accounts in HDFC, Kotak and RBL banks. After the victim stopped responding, the accused escalated the threats by sending obscene messages to the victim’s family and workplace, further traumatising the victim.

The accused was living in a lavish villa

Riddh Bedi, a former product designer, turned to online scams after losing his job, to support his lavish lifestyle.

He studied Mechanical Engineering in California, USA, where he stayed for six years. He was addicted to action role-playing games (RPGs) and battle royale games. The accused resides alone at Ashima Villa (one of the lavish villas in a prime area in Bengaluru), where he pays rent of approximately Rs 75,000 per month.

His daily routine differs from standard Indian timings; he typically sleeps during the day and works at night, specifically targeting US citizens.

He used high-speed internet with speeds of 1,000 Mbps to ensure uninterrupted connection while chatting with victims. (This kind of bandwidth is often favoured by tech-based businesses that require fast data transfer and stable connections to support multiple users and devices simultaneously)

The accused created fake profiles using stolen images

He created fake profiles on dating websites like Seeking.com, using stolen images of women to lure unsuspecting victims into sending sensitive photos. Once he obtained these images, he blackmailed the victims, threatening to release the compromising content unless they paid large sums of money.

To facilitate the transfer of these funds from the US to India, Bedi instructed the victims to use online payment platforms, including Zelle, (which is commonly used in the US for transferring funds quickly and easily). The money was later routed to his Indian bank accounts, including those in HDFC, Kotak, and RBL banks.

To avoid detection, the accused used multiple phone numbers, email addresses and social media platforms, taking careful steps to cover his tracks.

A team from the Cyber Crimes Police led by inspector P Pramod Kumar and SI Venkatadri with their team proceeded to Bengaluru and coordinated with Whitefield Police Station, Bangalore to apprehend the accused. Upon interrogation, the accused admitted his involvement in the crime. The accused has been remanded to judicial custody.

Public advisory

The general public is advised to be cautious about sharing personal information online, especially on dating platforms, not to send money to anyone in fear without proper verification and to report any suspicious activity to the police immediately.