Panipat, May 4

The police have arrested two persons, including a woman, in an alleged honeytrap case in which the suspects duped a man of

Rs 58.55 lakh by threatening to make obscene videos of him viral on social media.

The suspects, identified as Manisha of Muzaffarnagar, and Krishan of Gharaunda in Karnal district, lived in Hari Nagar colony here.

CIA-3 incharge Inspector Deepak said both the suspects had been blackmailing the victim for the past year by threatening to make his videos viral. Exasperated, he finally trapped them after they demanded Rs 15,000 from him. He handed over the money to the suspects in Hari Nagar colony, after having clicked a photo of the amount.

The police registered a case on the victim's complaint and caught the suspects with Rs 15,000 on Thursday. The suspects were sent to three days' police remand.

The victim alleged that Manisha had first contacted him in March 2023. He said that since then, the suspects extorted Rs 40 lakh in cash and Rs 18.40 lakh through online transfer from him.

SP Ajit Singh Shekhawat urged people to beware of such fraudsters and get in touch with the police if they were being blackmailed. The police would initiate action against the suspects immediately, the SP said.