Woman blackmailed for a year, loses ₹3 crore

The victim confided in the accused’s wife, but to her horror, his wife started demanding money from her.

Mumbai: A 38-year-old housewife from Jogeshwari has registered a complaint, stating that her family friend drugged her and sexually assaulted her a year ago, and has been blackmailing her since then. The wife of the accused, after learning about the matter, allegedly started blackmailing the victim as well. The accused couple allegedly extorted ₹3 crore from the woman.

The victim, in her statement, has told the police that in April 2021, the accused called the victim over for his son’s birthday party and when they were both alone in the house, gave her a spiked drink, after which she passed out. When she regained consciousness, she realised that she had been sexually abused and soon thereafter, the accused started blackmailing her using compromising videos of her, that he had allegedly recorded when she was unconscious. (Image for representation)

As per the police, the victim, who stays with her husband and two sons, approached them last week after she was allegedly stopped in the street by an unidentified man, who claimed to demand money on behalf of the accused couple.

“The victim has said in her statement that this was only the latest in a string of demands over the last year. The man told the victim that she would have to pay ₹2 crore as a ‘full and final’ settlement, after which she would be left alone. However, the victim was tired of the exploitation and the subterfuge, and decided to come clean to her husband, after which they approached us,” said an officer with the MIDC police station.

The victim, in her statement, has told the police that in April 2021, the accused called the victim over for his son’s birthday party and when they were both alone in the house, gave her a spiked drink, after which she passed out. When she regained consciousness, she realised that she had been sexually abused and soon thereafter, the accused started blackmailing her using compromising videos of her, that he had allegedly recorded when she was unconscious.

When the abuse continued for several months, the victim confided in the accused’s wife, but to her horror, his wife started demanding money from her. The incident affected the victim so badly that she went to her native Madhya Pradesh for a few months, and when the accused kept harassing her, she registered two complaints against him with the local police.

“According to the victim, the husband and wife have taken close to ₹3 crore from her over the last one year. Last week, when she was out shopping with her son, an unidentified man stopped her outside the mall, showed her the video and demanded ₹2 crore,” the officer said.

The victim subsequently approached the Meghwadi police, and the complaint was forwarded to the MIDC police station on Saturday.

Senior police inspector Satish Gaikwad, MIDC police station said, “We have registered an offence of extortion against unidentified persons for the moment and are obtaining details of the two cases filed in Madhya Pradesh earlier, after which we may add relevant sections in our FIR. No arrests have been made so far.”