Punjagutta police arrest freelance YouTuber in extortion case

Punjagutta Police arrested freelance journalist Munige Mahender, associated with SKS FLY TV, for allegedly attempting to extort Rs 40 lakh from SSL Infra by publishing defamatory videos about its Peacock Avenue project in Vikarabad. Police said Mahender, along with four others from different YouTube channels, created misleading content and threatened the company to remove the videos only if paid.

Hyderabad: The Punjagutta police on Friday arrested a freelance journalist working for a YouTube news channel named ‘SKS FLY TV’ for allegedly threatening and attempting to extort money from a real estate company by publishing defamatory videos.

According to police, the suspect, Munige Mahender (40) from Old Bowenpally, along with four others – Venkatesh, owner of SKS FLY TV, Kiran from Vijetha Paper, Mahender from SCB Channel and Maajid from MR News, all YouTube channels had created misleading content targeting SSL Infra’s venture Peacock Avenue (Our Nest) in Vikarabad district and later demanded Rs 40 lakh from the company to delete the already uploaded videos and stop further defamation.

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“The suspects used threats, criminal intimidation and misuse of digital media platforms to induce the victim to pay unlawful gratification,” police said.

Following a tip-off, Mahender was arrested and efforts are underway to nab the remaining suspects. Officials seized a mobile phone used in the offence and digital evidence, including WhatsApp chats and voice recordings.