Two held from Delhi, Rajasthan for extorting men on dating app

They coerced victims into depositing money online and used multiple accounts to evade detection by authorities

Published on: Jun 17, 2025, 06:06:05 IST

By Jignasa Sinha

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Delhi Police busted a gang that was luring men on dating apps, recording their videos and extorting them, by arresting two men who were operating out of the city and Rajasthan, officers said on Monday.

The Shahdara cyber cell registered a case and started analysing bank accounts, call records and other digital evidence. (Representative photo)

They coerced victims into depositing money online and used multiple accounts to evade detection by authorities. However, police zeroed in on the two men after a 28-year-old man from Shahdara filed a complaint alleging blackmail by a woman he met on a dating app.

A senior police officer said, “He told us that he met a woman online and they soon started texting on WhatsApp. They once got on a video call, in which the woman recorded the call and later threatened him to upload the recording online. He got scared and sent ₹35,000 to a bank account but the woman demanded more money.”

The Shahdara cyber cell registered a case and started analysing bank accounts, call records and other digital evidence. “We found the money was transferred to one account which belonged to a 31-year-old man but was being operated by someone else. We conducted several raids and arrested one of the accused,” the officer said.

Police said they arrested 31-year-old Mangal Singh from Alipur in Delhi on Saturday and zeroed in on others based on information provided by him.

Dependra Kumar Singh, additional DCP (Shahdara), said a team arrested a 21-year-old man, Shyam Singh, from his home in Rajasthan’s Sikri. “A majority of the extorted funds went to Mangal, followed by another associate known as Sonu, who is still on the run. Another associate Shyam provided email IDs, SIM cards and bank account details to help the gang.”

Police said they seized four phones and identified fake profiles on dating apps, besides another associate identified as Aamir. They said they would ascertain if women were involved in trapping the victims or if the gang used online videos.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Jignasa Sinha
Jignasa Sinha is a Special Correspondent at Hindustan Times in New Delhi. With more than six years of reporting experience, she covers crime and policing in the national capital. Her beats also include Delhi prisons, the Delhi Fire Services and Delhi courts, while she regularly reports on gender, labour and social justice. Over the course of her career, Jignasa has reported on major criminal investigations, international crime syndicates, high-profile cyber fraud cases, law-and-order developments, protests, disasters and public institutions. Her reporting combines breaking news with in-depth, long form, human interest stories that examine the human impact of public policy, policing and the criminal justice system. In addition to reporting for the newspaper, she contributes to the Hindustan Times website and app, and plays an active role in coordinating on-ground coverage of major developments and breaking news across Delhi. Before joining Hindustan Times, Jignasa worked at The Indian Express newspaper in New Delhi, where she spent five years covering crime, Delhi airport, courts and health. She began her journalism career as an intern at an AI magazine in Bengaluru while pursuing her postgraduate diploma in multimedia journalism at the Indian Institute of Journalism and New Media.Read More

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