Online gaming ‘friend’ morphs Ludhiana woman’s photos, extorts ₹41,000 from her

Ludhiana police said that a case was registered against the accused, identified as Manoj Prajapati from Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh, at the cyber crime police station

Befriending a stranger while playing PUBG, an online multiplayer game, turned into a nightmare for a 28-year-old city woman as the man allegedly morphed her pictures and extorted ₹41,000 from her, officials said.

A complaint was filed by the Ludhiana woman’s brother after she shared the incident with her family. (HT Photo)

They added that a case was registered against the accused, identified as Manoj Prajapati from Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh, at the cyber crime police station.

The woman alleged the accused morphed her pictures and posted them on a social media platform an. She said the accused was demanding more money and threatening to send the morphed pictures to her fiancé.

A complaint was filed by the woman’s brother after she shared the incident with her family. The complainant, a resident of Rishi Nagar, said his sister came in contact with the accused in 2020 while playing the game on her mobile phone and shared her contact number with him.

The woman said that out of fear, she transferred ₹41,000 to accused’s bank account but he continued to harass her and asking for more money. She said he created fake accounts in her name on social networking platforms and posted the morphed pictures.

Cyber crime station-house officer (SHO) inspector Jatinder Singh said the woman was recently engaged and the accused was threatening to send the pictures to her fiance.

The inspector said a case was registered under Sections 75 (sexual harassment), 78 (stalking), 79 (intentionally insulting a woman’s modesty), 308(2) (extortion) and 351 (2) (criminal intimidation) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), and Section 66C of Information and Technology (IT) Act.