45-year-old man dies by suicide over sextortion threat in Thane district
Thane (PTI): A 45-year-old man died by suicide in Maharashtra's Thane district after allegedly being blackmailed by cyber criminals who threatened to circulate morphed obscene photographs of him on social media, police said on Sunday.
A probe has revealed that the victim, a resident of Kalyan East, was forced to transfer large sums of money in the months leading up to his death in January, they said.
Hemant Dayashankar Pandey hanged himself at his house in Kalyan East on January 7, he said.
According to the complaint filed by the victim's elder brother, he was being threatened by an unknown person, who claimed to have collected and created obscene images of him.
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An analysis of the victim's mobile phone revealed that he was under pressure to arrange for Rs 2 lakh, and he reportedly asked his brother for Rs 1.6 lakh.
"Emails sent to the deceased contained morphed obscene pictures. The sender was demanding money and threatening to defame him on social media," the official said.
He said the victim had transferred large sums of money between April 2025 and January 2026, and his family claimed that his inability to meet the escalating extortion demands caused him to take the extreme step.
A case has been registered against unidentified persons under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and the Information Technology Act, and a probe is underway, the official said.
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UP: Police official shunted after killing of two senior employees of biogas plant in Budaun
Budaun (UP) (PTI): The Uttar Pradesh government has shunted the Circle Officer of the area in connection with the recent killing of two senior officials at an HPCL compressed biogas plant in the district, officials said on Sunday.
Superintendent of Police (Rural) Hirdesh Katheriya said that Ujhani Circle Officer Devendra Singh has been attached to the Police headquarters in Lucknow, and Rahul Pandey of UP-112 emergency response service has been posted to Budaun in his place.
The action comes a day after the state government transferred Senior Superintendent of Police Brijesh Kumar Singh following the double murder at the plant in Sejni village in the Musajhag area.
Meanwhile, under the directions of Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, a Special Investigation Team (SIT) has been constituted under the chairmanship of the Bareilly divisional commissioner to conduct a detailed probe into the incident.
The incident took place on Thursday when Sudhir Kumar Gupta, 58, deputy general manager at the facility, and Harshit Sharma, 34, an assistant manager, were shot dead by Ajay Pratap Singh, who was earlier a vendor at the plant here in the district.
The main accused has been arrested, and authorities have also pasted notices on six shops allegedly owned by him in Sejni village that were reportedly constructed over government land, they said, adding that the demolition may be carried out after due procedure.
In view of the incident, authorities have also decided to establish a police outpost inside the plant premises with the deployment of two sub-inspectors and eight police personnel to enhance security.
