Four persons arrested for blackmailing doctors

Four persons, including a woman and two freelance journalists who allegedly used to blackmail doctors and pathological lab owners after preparing a video portraying them as a conduit for conducting prenatal sex determination test, have been arrested.
The gang was busted by the Crime Branch of Delhi Police after it arrested the four accused from their hideouts yesterday, police said.
Out of these fours, Dhan Singh alias Deepak (30) and Ram Sharan (32) worked as freelance journalists for some news channels. The duo had equipment like spycams and recorders which they used in carrying out the fake 'sting' operations.
The other main gang member was 36-year-old Pushpa who used to act as the dummy pregnant woman to trap medical practitioners. Their fourth associate has been identified as Jai Kochar (24). He has been associated in 6-7 sting operations with Dhan Singh and Ram Sharan in which they had extorted money.

"The gang had revealed to have targeted around 50 doctors, nursing homes and pathological lab owners during the last one year. All of their earlier victims at not come forward because either they were themselves at fault or due to fear of being defamed," said Joint Commissioner of Police (Crime) Ravindra Yadav.
Their interrogation has uncovered a very unique modus operandi used by the gang.

"They used to target well established doctors/owners of nursing homes, etc. First, the woman member of the gang would approach the doctor on the pretext of being pregnant and for conducting pre-natal sex determination test. If the victim used to refuse, a clever strategy of asking questions would be adopted," said Yadav.

The gang members stationed outside would guide the woman through concealed communication devices and the matter would be recorded by her using spy cameras. They would ask to get genetic/DNA tests if nothing incriminating was forthcoming in the conversation and later fabricate the recordings by improving and altering the conversation recorded through editing software, he said.
It has come to fore that the gang also used to extort money from hotel owners after threatening them of similar 'sting' operation portraying them as running flesh trade from their premises.
Investigators also said that the name of the two 'journalists' had also cropped up in the case where Delhi Police Sub Inspector Vandana Rao and Constable Hans Kumar were arrested for allegedly trying to extort money from a Punjab-based businessman after threatening to frame him in a case of sex racket in September this year.

Their involvement in that case is also being investigated, police said.