Hyderabad City Cyber Crime Police arrest Bangalore man involved in sextortion scam

Hyderabad: The Hyderabad City Cyber Crime Police Station and Detective Department has successfully arrested Riddh Bedi, a resident of Bangalore, involved in a serious sextortion scam targeting victims abroad.

The 26–year-old accused was apprehended by the police for his involvement in a well-organized fraud scheme using dating websites to lure victims into compromising situations and extort money, Dara Kavitha, Deputy Commissioner of Police Cyber Crimes, Hyderabad City, said in a release here on Thursday.

The complainant reported that his son residing in California, USA was blackmailed and extorted for a total amount of $1,721 by the accused.

The accused posed as a woman on a dating platform and lured the victim into sharing personal information and sensitive images. Using this information, the accused threatened to expose the victim to his social circle unless a ransom was paid.

The victim made several transactions to an Indian mobile number linked to bank accounts in HDFC, Kotak, and RBL banks. After the victim stopped responding, the accused escalated the threats by sending obscene messages to the victim’s family and workplace, further traumatizing the victim.

The modus operandi, the accused, Riddh Bedi, a former product designer, turned to online scams after losing his job, in order to support his lavish lifestyle.

Riddh Bedi, studied Mechanical Engineering in California, USA, where he stayed for six years and now resides in Bengaluru.

He created fake profiles on dating websites like Seeking.com, using stolen images of women to lure unsuspecting victims into sending sensitive photos.

Once he obtained these images, he blackmailed the victims, threatening to release the compromising content unless they paid large sums of money.

To facilitate the transfer of these funds from the US to India, Bedi instructed the victims to use online payment platforms, including Zelle, ( which is commonly used in the US for transferring funds quickly and easily ).

The money was later routed to his Indian bank accounts, including those in HDFC, Kotak, and RBL banks.

To avoid detection, the accused used multiple phone numbers, email addresses, and social media platforms, taking careful steps to cover his tracks.

A team from the Cyber Crimes Police lead by Inspector P Pramod Kumar & SI Venkatadri with their team proceeded to Bengaluru and coordinated with Whitefield Police Station, Bangalore to apprehend the accused.

Upon interrogation, the accused admitted his involvement in the crime .

The accused has been remanded to judicial custody.

The police seized incriminating materials, including one Laptop and one iPhone Mobile from the accused.