Chennai, June 08: In a shocking case of blackmail, extortion and murder in Chennai, a 27-year-old doctor from Asthampatti near Salem, identified as Dr Santosh Kumar, has been arrested by the Kodungaiyur police for killing a 26-year-old woman who allegedly blackmailed him using his nude pictures.

The victim, Nithya, a resident of Sattuma Nagar in Thiruvottiyur, reportedly posed as an IT professional working in Ambattur and extorted money from multiple men. She had befriended Dr Santosh online and gradually began blackmailing him, threatening to leak his nude photos to his family. Police said she extracted over INR 8 lakh from the doctor under this threat. Nude Photos Scam: How Fraudsters Extort Money, Blackmail People With Obscene Pictures After Claiming Registration of Multiple SIM Cards Under Their Name (Watch Video).

On Thursday, Nithya invited Santosh to her rented house in Teachers Colony, Kodungaiyur. There, he gave her alcohol laced with sedatives and smothered her with a pillow. Before leaving, he took 25 sovereigns of gold jewellery. ‘Mele Babu Ne Khana Khaya?’ Used for Cyber Fraud: MP Youth Held for Posing as Woman, Using Fake Nude Pics To Dupe Men; Video of Fraudster Imitating Female Voice Surfaces.

When Nithya’s live-in partner, Balamurugan, returned that evening, he found her unconscious and called an ambulance, but she was declared dead. Initially, the case was registered as a suicide, since there were no visible injuries.

However, forensic analysis of her call records revealed that her last call was to Santosh. CCTV footage from the locality confirmed his visit. Upon interrogation, Santosh confessed to the crime.

Police later recovered the stolen jewellery in a jute bag from the home of the doctor’s neighbor, Mujpur Pasha, who was not involved and was released after questioning.

Investigators are now probing whether Nithya had blackmailed other individuals and if she was part of a larger extortion racket.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jun 08, 2025 08:12 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).