2 months after suicide, cops found man was a victim of sextortion scam

Gurudwara cook dies by suicide in Santacruz after being a victim of sextortion; police have booked the accused for cheating and cyber fraud.

MUMBAI: Two months after a Gurudwara cook died by suicide in Santacruz, the police found out that he was a victim of sextortion which probably led him to take the extreme step. This case marks the second sextortion-related suicide this month. However, the police have booked the unknown accused only for cheating and cyber fraud and haven’t added the charge of abetment to suicide.

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The incident occurred on August 9, when Mansingh Pawar was found hanging by the fan in his room in the Gurudwara premises. The police had registered an accidental death report (ADR) at the time and initiated a probe into his death. Last week, the police learnt that the deceased was being harassed by sextortion racketeers after going through the contents of his mobile.

According to Pawar’s wife Tulsabai, the police told her that they had found WhatsApp chats in which Pawar was being threatened about a video of his being uploaded to YouTube. “They also found transactions worth ₹56,000 from his PayTM account. The accused had even called my husband saying they were officers of the Cyber cell of the Delhi police, having shared their identity cards with him on WhatsApp as well,” Tulsabai said. All these messages, she added, were sent to his phone between August 7 and 9. The Santacruz police have registered a case under sections 419 (cheating by personation) and 420 (cheating and dishonesty) of the Indian Penal Code along with sections 66 C (identity theft) and 66 D (cheating by personation) of the Information Technology Act in connection with Pawar’s untimely death.

Tulsabai said that though she was called to the police station to record her statement, she is not aware of an FIR being registered. When asked about the people who extorted her husband, she said she would like the police to hold them accountable for his death.

“We have registered a case based on the facts of the matter that came forward during our probe. The fact that he committed suicide due to the sextortion has not been proven yet. If we find the necessary link, we will add the relevant section. Our investigation is not over yet,” Krishnakant Upadhyay, deputy commissioner of police, zone 9, said. On October 9, an employee of the Central Railways jumped in front of a local train at Matunga railway station. He was found carrying a note in his pocket that said that he was left with no choice but suicide as he was being blackmailed by a woman he met on Facebook, who recorded a video of him in a state of undress.

Similarly, after the deceased refused to pay her ₹2 lakh, a man posing as an officer of the Delhi Police cyber cell started threatening him of uploading the video on YouTube. Dadar GRP had then registered a case under sections 306 (abetment of suicide), 384 (extortion), and 34 (common intention) of the Indian Penal Code and 66E (violating privacy) of the Information Technology Act.