Three juveniles were apprehended on charges of morphing photographs of a 15-year-old schoolgirl, blackmailing her, and eventually forcing her into sharing private videos of herself before sending them to her father to demand a ransom of ₹10 lakh. The minors were picked up by officials from the All Women Police Station in Krishnagiri and sent to the Observation Home in Salem.

One of the three apprehended youth was the neighbour of the schoolgirl. He was a Class 9 student who had dropped out of school for over six months. According to the police, he had two other boys visiting his house. Over time, the trio decided to stalk the girl’s social media accounts. They created a fake account and sent a follow request on Instagram. They downloaded her images from her profile and had them morphed into unrelated obscene photos.

With those images, the trio blackmailed the girl into sharing private photos and videos. The police said that fearing humiliation, the girl did what she was asked to do. The three boys later shared these videos and photos with her father on WhatsApp and demanded a ransom of ₹10 lakh to stop the circulation of the videos, said a police source. The number was traced to the neighbour, who was the main perpetrator.

The girl’s father approached the All Women Police Station and lodged a complaint. The police traced the trio, and they were apprehended and sent to the juvenile home in Salem.