The accused, Mahesh Pawar, was arrested a few hours later from Virar in neighbouring Palghar district, police said. The accused allegedly offered her samosas and some beverage to celebrate the female friend's birthday. The accused allegedly overpowered and raped her, and later blackmailed her with the recorded video of the assault. The accused allegedly shot obscene videos of several women, using which he blackmailed them and extorted money, gold and mobile phones, he said. He allegedly forced women into participating in nude video calls with him and recorded these to threaten them, the official said.

Source: The Telegraph December 21, 2025 10:36 UTC