KOCHI: With more proof of the criminal history of the four-member gang arrested for blackmailing actor Shamna Kasim coming to the fore, investigators suspect she would have faced a traumatic experience similar to what was faced by the victim in the sensational actor abduction case.
The remand report filed by the investigation team before the Ernakulam Judicial First Class Court said that they require a detailed interrogation of the accused in custody to examine whether they would have carried out a similar operation as in the actor abduction case in 2017.
The police cited this as a major reason for objecting to granting bail to the arrested. Shamna Kasim, an upcoming actor in South Indian cinema, is currently in Hyderabad in connection with the shooting of a movie.
Hence, the police could not record her statement.
According to the police, the first accused, Rafeeq, with an intention to extort money after blackmailing the actor, got acquainted with Shamna Kasim and her family.
He sent the photograph of a Kasaragod-based TikTok model in the guise of his photograph. Later, he approached the actor with a marriage proposal.
Subsequently, in the guise of taking the proposal forward, the other accused reached her house on Mosque Road at Maradu in Kochi and captured photographs and video of the house and the vehicles parked there.
"When the actor informed Rafeeq about this, he told her that Shamna's photos and several messages were in his possession and he would play a game if she didn't give him Rs 1 lakh. He threatened to spoil her career and kill her," said the report.
The accused had hatched up a criminal conspiracy and all accused except Rafeeq were directly involved in executing the crime. The others acted on behalf of him and they trespassed into the victim's house to carry out their plan of blackmailing and extortion.
According to the police, the incident occurred between April 23 and June 23. Shamna's mother Roulabi lodged a complaint with the police and, following this, the police arrested the four persons. "More persons are involved in this case and an inquiry is under way to arrest the rest of the accused," said City Police
Commissioner Vijay Sakhare.
The trial of the actor abduction case is on at a special court in Kochi. The incident pertains to the attack on a prominent Malayalam actor inside a moving vehicle on February 17, 2017. The attackers recorded the visuals of the attack with the intention to blackmail her.