Bengaluru, February 17 – In a shocking incident, a case of alleged voyeurism and online blackmail was reported on Tuesday in connection with the recently-held Celebrity Women Cricket Tournament at the Koramangala Indoor Stadium in Bengaluru.
An actress and reality show contestant has approached the Cyber Crime Police, alleging that an unidentified person secretly recorded a video of her inside the washroom at the stadium and later used it to blackmail her.
According to the actress's complaint, the incident took place on the second day of the Celebrity Women Cricket Tournament, which was being held at the Koramangala Indoor Stadium in Bengaluru.
The victim later discovered that a stranger had allegedly recorded her video without her knowledge when she was in the stadium's washroom. Later, the accused reportedly sent the video and photographs to her Instagram account and also forwarded them to one of her close friends.
The accused allegedly threatened to make the video go viral on social media if she failed to pay a ransom. Police said the accused contacted the actress three to four times and also attempted to reach her through her friend in order to pressure her.
The threatening messages were allegedly sent from an Instagram account identified as 'Swan.3704722', police said.
Following the complaint, the Cyber Crime Police registered an FIR and launched a hunt to trace the accused. A case has been booked under relevant provisions of the Information Technology Act and Sections 77 (voyeurism, who watches, captures, or disseminates images of a woman engaged in a private act without her consent), 308 (extortion) and 351 (criminal intimidation) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).
Police officials said efforts are underway to identify the person behind the Instagram account and apprehend them. Further investigation is in progress. More details regarding the case of voyeurism and online blackmail are yet to emerge.