Daijiworld Media Network - Panaji
Panaji, May 25: Goa Police, in coordination with the Uttarakhand Special Task Force (STF), arrested the alleged mastermind of a high-profile interstate sextortion racket from Dehradun on Sunday, nearly three years after a businessman from Mapusa was allegedly blackmailed and extorted.
The accused, identified as Salman Khan, is accused of orchestrating the racket and allegedly extorting lakhs of rupees from the victim. Police said he had been absconding since the 2023 incident and is suspected to have been involved in similar crimes across multiple states.
The case dates back to August 2023 when a group allegedly posing as officials of the Delhi Narcotics Bureau raided the complainant’s bungalow in Mapusa. The businessman was allegedly assaulted, intimidated and blackmailed, with the accused reportedly extorting around Rs 30 lakh from him.
During the investigation, Goa Police had arrested four accused in 2024 — Nivedita Sharma, Bhuvan Arora, Faizan Khan and Mohammad Basheed Khan — for their alleged involvement in the racket.
Investigators said the gang operated a sophisticated sextortion network targeting wealthy businessmen by allegedly using women to lure victims into compromising situations. The victims were reportedly filmed secretly and later threatened with exposure to extort money.
Police suspect the accused used proceeds from the racket to establish a restaurant business in Delhi through a partnership arrangement.
According to STF officials, Salman Khan disclosed during interrogation that he became associated with the group through Nivedita Sharma at her residence in Delhi’s Kalkaji area.
Officials said he met several alleged members there, including Mohammad Ayaan, Mohammad Wasid, Faizan Farzan, Yasar, Raj Chaudhary and Bhuvan Arora.
“Together, they formed a sextortion racket targeting wealthy businessmen through young women. They falsely posed as Delhi Narcotics Bureau officers, threatened victims with reputational damage, confined them, physically assaulted them and extorted huge amounts of money,” an STF official said.
As part of the alleged conspiracy, the gang had rented a forest villa in Mapusa and installed hidden cameras inside the property.
Police said Nivedita Sharma allegedly invited the businessman to the villa, where he was lured into a compromising situation.
Later, the other accused allegedly entered the villa posing as narcotics officials, recorded videos of the victim, held him captive, assaulted him and extorted large amounts of money from him, police added.