The arrested are V M Girish (28) from Mahalakshmipuram, Venkatesh (28) of RT Nagar and Rajendra (26) from Sultanpalya.

According to the police, the suspects visited the house of Hemanth last month and introduced themselves as reporters of a tabloid paper.

They alleged Hemanth was carrying out prostitution activities and threatened to publish his photographs along with those of a few girls and tarnish his image.

The three men demanded that Hemanth give them jewellery for not publishing the photographs.

They took him in their car and went to a pawn broker’s shop near KS Layout bus stop.
They made him pledge the ornaments and collected Rs 31,000 from him.

They let him free after collecting his cellphone number, said the police.They called him up on Tuesday and directed him to meet them near a mango grove on Kanakapura Road.
They threatened him with a revolver and demanded Rs 25,000.

When he pleaded that he did not have so much money, they robbed him of Rs 2,700 he had, and set him free, warning him of dire consequences if he informed the police.

Held within two hours

Hemanth immediately approached the police who managed to arrest the three men within two hours in the same area.

They told the police during the interrogation they robbed a few women of their ornaments in a house in Subramanyapura posing as journalists and members of a pro-Kannada outfit and threatening to defame by publishing news and photographs purported to make it appear that they indulged in prostitution.

Businessman robbed

Three persons robbed a businessman of his car in Hulimavu on Wednesday night.
The incident took place when Srinivas Reddy, who is into lorry business, was returning home in his car.

The suspects, aged around 35, accosted Reddy at Basavanapura on the NICE Road.
They threatened him at knifepoint. They got into his car after dragging him out and immediately fled, said the police.