A 19-year-old was taken into custody by Banjara Hills police here in a case of extortion on Thursday, within hours of his return from Bangkok, where he had gone on a holiday with allegedly ill-gotten money.
A case was registered against the accused, Faraz Khan, by a city-based man, who alleged that the teen along with one Hyder Hussain, 26, took money and gold jewellery worth Rs5 lakh by blackmailing and threatening his daughter. Khan’s family, however, says the boy is innocent and is being framed.
Alleging that the police has tortured his son in custody, Basith Khan, a city trader, said that his son’s legs were swollen when he met him.
According to the complainant, the accused ‘met’ his daughter online a few months ago, and the two got close by regularly chatting online and subsequently over telephone. Khan allegedly told the girl, a minor, that he required money for his mother’s treatment. He also told her that his life was in danger and he needed money to get out of trouble, the complaint said.
According to the complainant, his daughter sent Khan money through the family driver without his knowledge and also gave him ornaments each time he met her at their home. Having registered a case of extortion, the police has started an investigation and said they are trying to unearth how Khan got the money and where he spent it. The other accused, Hyder, is still in Bangkok.
But rubbishing the charges, Basith Khan said, “My son went missing soon as he returned from Bangkok. I learnt later that the police had taken him away. The police initially gave me no details, and when I was allowed to meet him, Faraz told me that the cops had beaten him up badly.”
He claimed that the complainant told him he would withdraw the case “if I pay him Rs 7 lakh”, and added, “My son is being forced to accept the crime (that he did not commit).”