2 Kolkata business scions held in extortion case; cops found intimate videos of 182 women

Kolkata, Jan 30: The Kolkata Police on Wednesday have arrested three persons including two members of reputed business families of the city, for allegedly blackmailing to extort money from several women after threatening to make public intimate moments captured with them on video. Cops found videotapes of intimate moments of 182 women which were in their possession.

According to the police officials, the videotapes were allegedly recorded by the two members of business families over a period of seven years.

Another person arrested was a cook employed by one of the families, who used to call a potential victim and extort money by blackmailing her to release the intimate videotapes on the internet, as per an IPS officer.

The officer added that Anish Loharuka a member of a family owning several hotels and his friend Aditya Aggarwal a scion of a popular ethnic wear chain have started recording such videotaping since 2013.

The IPS officer told PTI, "At first, they used to befriend a woman and then develop physical relationships with them. During intimate moments, they recorded photographs and videos and preserve them on computers. After coming out of the relationship. Their main intention was to squeeze money from these women."

As per a senior police official, during investigating a complaint was lodged in November 2019 by a woman at Kolkata Police's Cyber Crime section, police nabbed one person, identified as Kailash Yadav, on January 10 for allegedly making calls to the complainant to blackmail her.

After questioning him, the police arrested Loharuka and Aggarwal on January 28, he said adding that they did not want their names to be involved and used Kailash to make those threat calls.

As of now, Kolkata Police have reportedly seized the videotapes of intimate moments involving 182 women, which the two businessmen had recorded in the past seven years.

A laptop containing the photographs and videotapes have been also seized and sent for forensic tests. Police suspect the laptop allegedly belonged to Loharuka, that was found to contain 182 folders, each with videos of different women in positions of intimacy, most of the clippings dated back to 2013.

Police have also found several call records and WhatsApp messages between Yadav and the complainant in the last three months. Meanwhile, cops have also retrieved call records of his device.

The complainant has claimed she had paid Kailash Rs 5 lakh but when he demanded another Rs 10 lakh, she lodged a complaint with the police. The trio, when produced before a city court, was remanded to police custody till February 6.