Mumbai: Man lodges extortion complaint after harassment from loan sharks

A 27-year-old man has lodged a complaint with the Malad police claiming that despite having repaid the loan taken from a mobile loan app, according to the complaint, the fraudsters had threatened him to repay the loan money and had morphed his photograph in an obscene manner and had sent the same to those in his contact list.

The victim was left shocked when he learnt that those in his contact list had received messages from loan recovery agents, informing them that the victim had taken a loan and had given their numbers as references.

According to the police, the complainant is a resident of Titwala and works in a private company at Malad.

As per the victim, in May this year, he had taken a loan of Rs 9,000 and another for Rs 3,500 from a mobile loan app and had repaid the same within the stipulated time.

On May 17, however, the victim had received a message on his phone from an unknown number. In the message, it was stated that if he would not repay the loan, then his photograph would be morphed in an obscene manner and would be sent to those on his contact list.

"As per the victim, on June 15, when the victim was at his office, he again received a message asking him to make the payment. The victim blocked the said number after which he was informed by people in his contact list that they had received messages from unknown numbers, informing them that the victim had taken the loan and had given their numbers as references. A relative of the victim had received an obscene image of the victim on his phone from an unknown number," said a police officer.

On June 17 too, the victim received similar messages from other unknown numbers after which he approached the police and got a criminal complaint in the matter.

The police have registered a case on charges of extortion, printing or engraving matter known to be defamatory, intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of the peace, criminal intimidation, publishing or transmitting obscene material in electronic form, publishing or transmitting of material containing the sexually explicit act, etc., in electronic form and violation of privacy.