Malad family booked for blackmailing tuition teacher

MUMBAI: Malad police booked three family members for allegedly blackmailing a tuition teacher for ₹60 lakh to withdraw a complaint against her.

MUMBAI: The Malad police on Thursday booked three members of a family for allegedly blackmailing a tuition teacher from South Mumbai with the demand of ₹60 lakh in return for taking back a police complaint they had filed against her.

Malad family booked for blackmailing tuition teacher

According to the Malad police, the complainant, a 45-year-old woman who stays in South Mumbai and takes tuition classes in her house, had met a Kandivali-based man on social media early this year and the two had become friends.

The complainant told the police that on May 20, 2024, the two had spoken on a WhatsApp video call, when the man had made obscene gestures, making her uncomfortable. In the beginning of December, the Malad police registered a case against the tuition teacher, based on a complaint lodged by the man’s sister claiming that she had been harassing their family. On December 24, the woman claimed that her friend’s brother-in-law had called her father and demanded ₹60 lakh to take back the police complaint.

Fearing more harassment by the man and his family, the woman approached the Malad police and got a molestation case registered against the man, accusing also his family members of extortion and threats.

“We have recorded the woman’s statement and filed an FIR. However, the case has been transferred to the MRA Marg police station as the crime was committed in their jurisdiction,” said an officer from Malad police station.