Man arrested in Uttar Pradesh for posting morphed pics of Gurugram woman online

The suspect met the woman at a Metro station and convinced her to make an Instagram reel by which he got her phone number. He then called her and demanded money

A 21-year-old man from Uttar Pradesh was arrested on Friday for creating a fake social media account of a 22-year-old woman and disseminating her morphed photos after she refused to pay him money, police officers aware of the matter said on Saturday. According to the police, a mobile with a SIM card was recovered from the suspect’s possession.

The suspect has been identified as Shailender Singh of Jorapar in Uttar Pradesh’s Badaun district. He was produced in a city court on Friday and sent to judicial custody. (Representational image)

The suspect has been identified as Shailender Singh of Jorapar in Uttar Pradesh’s Badaun district. He was produced in a city court on Friday and sent to judicial custody.

Varun Dhaiya, assistant commissioner of police (crime), said that on September 29, they received a complaint from a woman resident of Gurugram, who claimed that an unknown person called her on WhatsApp and threatened to make a photo of hers viral by morphing it using artificial intelligence software. “The suspect demanded money and threatened to make the photo viral if it was not paid. Following the complaint, a case was filed, and the suspect was arrested from his village in Uttar Pradesh,” he said.

According to Dahiya, during questioning, the suspect revealed that he met the complainant in the second week of September at Sikandarpur Metro station, where he obtained her phone number by convincing her to make an Instagram reel. “He then called her and demanded money,” he said.