Noida: Four arrested for recording couples in OYO rooms
Uttar Pradesh Police arrested four men for allegedly blackmailing couples after recording their intimate moments through hidden cameras in OYO rooms in Noida. According to The Indian Express, the police claimed to have busted three such gangs in the city, that were also operating illegal call centers. The accused have been identified as Vishnu Singh, Abdul Wahav, Pankaj Kumar, and Anurag Kumar.
Officials reveal the modus operandi of the gang
Singh and Wahav were involved in surreptitiously filming couples in OYO rooms and blackmailing them for money, police told The Indian Express. Pankaj gave the SIM card and bank account used for the extortion, which he did with his companion Saurabh, who is presently at large, police said. Anurag would also operate using a SIM card and a bank account by Pankaj, they added.
Cheating people through call centers
Anurag, according to investigators, was also running illegal call centers to defraud victims under the guise of selling iPhones at cheap rates on online marketplaces. He had been doing this for about two years and ran three such call centers in different areas, they claimed, adding that the accused had defrauded victims out of crores of rupees.
What led to arrest of gang members?
ADCP (Central Noida) Saad Miya Khan said that a couple recently complained that someone sent them a video of their private moments and demanded money. After an investigation, police found that "the accused had booked the same room a few days before and had installed the camera." The accused would profile couples and send them their videos on their social media accounts and phones.
Case filed under IPC sections 420, 386, and 506
Meanwhile, officials said the case has been registered at Noida's Phase 3 Police Station under IPC Sections 420 (cheating), 386 (extortion by fear of death/grievous harm), and 506 (extortion by threat of death/grievous harm) (criminal intimidation). They said eleven computers, seven CPUs, 21 mobile phones, 22 ATM cards, and other computer gear were also seized.
