A 39-year-old president of an IT firm has filed a police complaint against a former colleague for alleged sexual harassment and extortion.
In her complaint to the police, she alleged that the accused — an assistant manager she trusted — invited her to his house and gave her a juice laced with sedatives. He then allegedly made a video clip and took photos to blackmail her.
“The accused, Suhas Uday Kumar, 32, is a resident of J.P. Nagar. He managed to extort ₹1.5 crore from the woman. He is absconding,” said a senior police officer.
In May 2016, the company hired Suhas as an assistant manager. In July 2016, the team celebrated the woman’s birthday. The HR personnel cut a cake in the office. It was at the office party that she met Suhas for the first time. In her statement to the police, she claimed he told her it was his mother’s birthday as well the same day.
Over time, he requested to be part of her team and directly report to her. She agreed. “The complainant says that on March 17, 2017, Suhas invited her home for lunch. She agreed,” the officer added.
In his house, Suhas allegedly offered her a glass of juice laced with sedatives. The woman told the police that she fell unconscious, and was unaware that Suhas had invaded her privacy. She realised what happened after he started blackmailing her with photographs and video clips. He allegedly started extorting money from her. Over the next two years, she gave him ₹1.5 crore.
In June 2019, he left the company. The woman hoped that it would be the end of the blackmail. However, he called her later in the month demanding ₹10,00,000. “She says he threatened to not only send the photos and videos to her family, but also upload them on social media. He also threatened her children,” the police added.
Unable to bear with the harassment, the victim approached the J.P. Nagar police who have booked Suhas under Sections 384 (extortion), 354C (voyeurism), 420 (cheating), 504 (intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of the peace) and 506 (criminal intimidation) of the Indian Penal Code.