Tamil Nadu police arrest self-styled godman over alleged abuse, secret filming

A self-styled godman was arrested in Salem district for allegedly sexually abusing women and minor girls and secretly filming them. Police said he used sedatives in food or drinks and allegedly sold the videos online. Digital devices have been seized

Salem (Tamil Nadu): A self-styled godman, who allegedly duped people by claiming to perform occult rituals, was arrested for allegedly sexually abusing women and minor girls, secretly filming them and selling the videos, police said on Sunday.

The accused, identified as Vijayaraja, 50, was running an occult rituals centre at Vazhapadi near here and allegedly filmed his victims under the pretext of performing rituals before distributing the footage through dark web forums, police said.

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The crime came to light when he allegedly attempted to molest a schoolgirl who had approached him to collect donations for a Vinayagar Chaturthi festival.

The frightened student informed her parents, prompting a group of family members and local youths to storm the ritual centre, named ‘Saneeswara’.

Noticing the approaching crowd, Vijayaraja locked the premises and fled the area.

Following an intensive search, locals tracked him down at a nearby hiding place, restrained him and handed him over to the Vazhapadi police.

The arrest led to the recovery of a laptop containing more than 50 videos of women and schoolgirls, which allegedly showed them in an obscene manner, police said.

According to police, the videos were recorded without the victims’ knowledge after they were allegedly given spiked drinking water or food items laced with sedatives in the form of prasad.

Vijayaraja, after the utensil manufacturing unit where he worked shut down, allegedly began falsely claiming that he was a “godman and practitioner of occult rituals”.

Using hidden cameras, he allegedly filmed his victims and sexually abused some of them while they were in an incapacitated state, police said.

During interrogation, Vijayaraja allegedly confessed that a portal had offered to pay him for such videos. He allegedly filmed his victims and sent the footage to the website, police said.

Police have registered a case against him under relevant sections of the law and are investigating whether other individuals or networks were involved.

Police have also seized his mobile phone and digital storage devices, and a detailed investigation is underway.