Rajajinagar, March 23: A 22-year-old BCom student, Vishnu Y, who claimed to be a sorcerer, has been arrested in Karnataka for allegedly attempting to extort a sawmill owner by threatening to share his morphed pictures to show his ‘affair’ with his mother-in-law, leading to the latter’s suicide. Vishnu, who boasted about his wizardry skills on Facebook, was taken into judicial custody earlier this week.

TOI reported that the victim, Mutturaj, a 25-year-old sawmill owner from Chandapura village in Kanakapura taluk of Ramanagara district, had sought Vishnu’s help to overcome his business losses. After befriending Vishnu on Facebook, Mutturaj was asked to share family pictures for a supposed ritual. Bengaluru Metro Suicide: Student of National School of Law Ends Life by Jumping in Front of Metro Train.

Vishnu then doctored the pictures of Mutturaj and his mother-in-law, demanding Rs 25,000 from Mutturaj and threatening to post the pictures online, insinuating an affair. Unable to meet Vishnu’s demand and fearing disgrace, Mutturaj committed suicide by jumping into the Arkavati river on March 9. Maharashtra: IIT, IIM Graduate MNC Employee Dies by Suicide in Matunga Due to ‘Work Pressure’, Says Police.

The truth behind Mutturaj’s death was revealed when his brother-in-law, Shashikumar, accessed Mutturaj’s mobile phone and found disturbing messages and voice recordings that pointed to Vishnu’s harassment. Following this, Mutturaj’s wife, Shilpa, filed a complaint accusing Vishnu of abetting the suicide.

Police suspect that Vishnu may have blackmailed at least 50-60 people who had sought his services. Further investigation into the incident is underway.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Mar 23, 2024 08:36 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).