Online friendships trap woman in exploitation and blackmail in Narayanaguda

Hyderabad: In a chilling tale that serves as a stark reminder of the dangers lurking in the digital world, a young woman’s pursuit of love and trust turned into a nightmarish ordeal of exploitation and blackmail. The incident, which unfolded in Narayanaguda in Hyderabad, raised concerns about the safety of online friendships.

According to Narayanguda Inspector Srinivas, a first-year MBA student is a resident of a private hostel in the Naryanaguda. Approximately seven months ago, she met Purnesh Yadav, a final-year Engineering student from Puttur in Chennai, through Instagram. Their friendship soon became a romantic relationship.

This seemingly love story took a dark turn when Purnesh, facing financial difficulties, turned to the young woman for monetary assistance in May. Desperate to meet her boyfriend’s needs, she sought help from another person she believed she could trust – Aslam, an Instagram friend from Hyderabad.

Aslam had sinister intentions. Claiming to be short on funds, he cunningly directed her to his friend, Sai Charan, promising that financial aid would be provided in return for sexual favours. Feeling cornered and desperate, the young woman reluctantly agreed to meet Sai Charan. She confided in Aslam about the arrangement she has with Purnesh, unaware that this would become her undoing.

In an act of betrayal, Aslam cunningly positioned a hidden cell phone camera in the room, and captured videos. After receiving funds from Sai Charan, she subsequently transferred Rs 2,000 rupees to Purnesh via Google Pay. A few days later, Aslam, who possessed videos of her, shared them with the victim through Snapchat.

The young woman pleaded Aslam to delete the videos. Demanding her to engage in sexual activities with all his friends, Aslam threatened to expose the videos to her friends and family.

The situation took a turn for the worse when the victim’s boyfriend, Purnesh, came to Hyderabad. When Purnesh saw the videos on her mobile phone during their meeting, he also threatened to disseminate the videos to her relatives and friends, intensifying the victim’s sense of fear and helplessness.

Fearing the repercussions, the young woman approached the She Team police, specialising in cases of violence against women. The police transferred the investigation to the Narayanaguda Police.

Following the victim’s complaint, the Narayanaguda Police registered a case against Aslam and others.

Inspector Srinivas said while Aslam was taken into custody, Purnesh and Sai Charan will be apprehended soon.