Sumalatha alias Anjali (L) and Harshini alias Sweety (R)
Credit: Special arrangement
Bengaluru: Police have arrested a five-member gang, including two women make-up artistes, for allegedly honey-trapping, robbing and assaulting a 31-year-old software engineer twice within a span of 20 days.
The arrested are Sumalatha alias Anjali (28), of Annapurneshwari Nagar; Harshini alias Sweety (26) of BHEL Layout, and their associates Jagadish (35), Manjunath (30) and Lokesh (32), all from Vidyaranyapura.
The victim, in a complaint, said that on Dec 1, he got a message from an unknown Telegram ID offering companionship and a video call via a dating platform. The woman allegedly sought Rs 20,000, which he agreed to pay. She shared a location and asked him to meet her, a senior police officer said.
When the victim reached the spot, the woman took him into a house on the pretext of talking privately and allegedly asked him to undress. Meanwhile, she snatched Rs 20,000 in cash and his mobile phone, threatening to make an explicit video viral if he approached the police. Fearing public humiliation, the victim managed to retrieve his phone and fled, the officer added.
Contacted again
Despite the earlier incident, the victim was again contacted on December 20 by the same woman, this time using a different Telegram ID under the name “Sweety”, with the help of an associate. She once again demanded Rs 20,000 and sent a new location in RR Nagar.
Trusting her, the victim went to the location in the afternoon. However, as he approached the locality, the woman allegedly arrived with three accomplices.
The gang reportedly snatched his wallet containing Rs 20,000, assaulted him by hitting on his face and groin, and also abused him.
"The gang threatened him with dire consequences and demanded a sum of Rs 1 lakh, warning that he would not be allowed to leave alive if he failed to pay. The victim further alleged that he was dragged into a nearby building where the assault continued. He raised an alarm, following which the passersby alerted the police helpline, leading to the immediate arrest of the accused. The police also recovered the cash and handed over to the victim on the spot," the police officer added.
Case registered
Based on the complaint, the RR Nagar police have registered a case for robbery, criminal intimidation and assault.
Further investigation is underway to ascertain whether the gang had targeted other victims .
Speaking to DH, the victim said that the woman targeted him a second time after realising that he had not filed a police complaint in the first instance.
"Soon after the arrest of the gang I came to know that Sumalatha identified me as an easy target. It was a honey-trap gang. She asked her associate Harshini to contact me and fix a meeting to extort money, and she joined the conversation while I was speaking to Sweety after reaching the location in the afternoon," he said.