Six were arrested for threatening Telangana MLCs with fake videos, demanding ₹5 crore

Narsingh police have arrested six persons for allegedly trying to extort money from Telangana Legislative Council member Mirza Rahmath Baig by threatening to circulate his morphed photos and deeply fake videos on social media. The accused initially demanded ₹5 lakh and subsequently collected ₹4.7 lakh, police said.

The arrested persons were identified as Mohd Mohsin Khan, 35, Fathima Begum alias Reema, 29, Mohd Sameer, 20, Mohd Zameer, 20, Mohd Imran, 18, and Syed Rehan, 20.

According to the police, the accused along with others on the run conspired to extort money from Baig due to financial difficulties and with the intention of making quick money. They threatened to circulate morphed photos and deeply fake videos depicting him in inappropriate ways, and warned that failure to pay would damage his political and social reputation and put his life at risk.

On 5 November, Fathima Begum along with Sameer, Zameer, Imran and Rehan went to the MLC office in Ibrahim Bagh where she collected ₹4 lakh in cash from him in a cotton box. Based on credible information, the police apprehended the group as they were leaving the scene and detained the five. Mohsin Khan was subsequently arrested during the operation.

Police recovered ₹4.7 million in cash, two autorickshaws, six mobile phones and a laptop. The cash was allegedly withdrawn as part of an extortion attempt.

Investigators said other members of the group were involved in obtaining and using morphed photos and deeply fake videos to threaten MLC, while some were involved in spreading the material through various social media accounts.

Police are trying to arrest the remaining accused and identify others involved in the conspiracy and distribution of the manipulated content. The investigation continues.

Published – 07 Nov 2026 10:08 IST