Man with ‘Bishnoi gang link' arrested for demanding ₹2 cr from YouTuber Sourav Joshi
The Nainital SSP noted that an FIR was immediately filed in this matter since involvement of Lawrence Bishnoi's name made it a sensitive case.
A man has been arrested for allegedly threatening a Uttarakhand-based popular YouTuber Sourav Joshi and demanding ₹2 crore from him as extortion money, the police said on Tuesday.
The accused, 19-year-old Arun Kumar, is a resident of Uttar Pradesh's Budaun.
Nainital SSP, Prahlad Narayan Meena, said: "A well-known YouTuber, Sourav Joshi, received a threat from someone claiming to be associated with the Lawrence Bishnoi gang".
In the letter, signed under the name of 'Karan Bishnoi', reportedly demanded ₹2 crore within five days, failing which Joshi and his family would be harmed, Meena added.
Additionally, the official said that since Lawrence Bishnoi's name has surfaced in the matter, the case has become sensitive. This is why an FIR was immediately registered under several relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita.
On the basis of the CCTV footage and information received from the police informer, the accused was identified. He was arrested by the Nainital police, Meena said.
Meanwhile, further probe revealed that the accused had previously worked at a high-end hotel in Mohali as a security guard, a Times of India report said. However, he was fired by his employer for poor performance.
"In an attempt to make quick money, he took this step. He searched for Sourav Joshi on YouTube, found his address, and tried to intimidate him. The police solved the case within 12 hours," Meena added.
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Police said Kumar reportedly confessed to sending the extortion letter to Joshi during interrogation. Meena said that he was produced before a local court following his arrest and sent to jail on Monday evening, TOI reported.
Sourav Joshi is a famous vlogger on YouTube, with over 29 million subscribers. The vlogger also has a an art channel with more than four million subscribers. Till date, Joshi has posted 1,863 videos on YouTube.
(with inputs from ANI)