Mumbai: 23-year-old who used fake FB profile to threaten teenager arrested

Panvel resident Raju Sonune, 23, who threatened an 18-year-old college student using a fake Facebook profile, driving him to suicide, was arrested on Wednesday.

Panvel resident Raju Sonune, 23, who threatened an 18-year-old college student using a fake Facebook profile, driving him to suicide, was arrested on Wednesday.

Sonune, a physically challenged man who works as a singer at a bar, had created a profile in the name of Priyanka Shah. He had sent a friend request to Abhishek Rasam, a student of Nalanda College, using the profile, and lured him into talking dirty online. He also coaxed Rasam to upload obscene pictures and videos over the social networking website.

After a few days, Sonune started demanding money from Rasam. When he refused, Sonune threatened to make public the private conversation, file an FIR and approach his family. Unable to handle the stress, Rasam ended his life on the railway tracks at Dadar.

“Sonune has been arrested under various sections of the Indian Penal Code and IT Act for abetting to suicide, extortion and obscene act,” said an inspector from the Borivli police station on condition of anonymity.

Sonune will be produced in the court on Thursday. Police are checking if he had blackmailed any other person in the past.