Kakkanad honeytrap case: Thrissur couple duped IT firm owner to revive hotel business

Kochi: A couple, arrested for extorting money from the owner of an IT company at the Infopark in Kakkanad here, allegedly committed the crime to restart their hotel business that had gone bust. 

A Sessions Court in Ernakulam granted them conditional bail after the accused couple assured to cooperate with the probe. The police opposed the couple's bail application, saying their custody was required to investigate whether they had engaged in a similar offence earlier. However, the court granted them bail since they were charged under Section 308 (extortion) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), punishable by a maximum imprisonment of seven years.

The prime accused had worked at the complainant's IT firm for about 18 months. Police sources indicated that the couple had been planning for months to honeytrap the entrepreneur and extort money from him.

The husband had several business ventures, including a hotel, but they made losses and were closed. The couple planned to extort money to restart the man's business.

The accused allegedly tried to extort money from the owner, threatening to reveal that he had been in an illicit relationship with the woman and would tarnish his image by making public his private chats with her. They also threatened to file a sexual assault complaint against him.

As part of the alleged conspiracy, the couple summoned the IT firm's three employees to a prominent hotel in Ernakulam on July 23 and demanded ₹30 crore. The duo wanted an immediate transfer of ₹10 crore to the husband's bank account and two cheques for a similar amount. They threatened the IT firm owner into paying ₹50,000, and the next day, they took two cheques for ₹20 crore.

Subsequently, the IT firm owner approached the police, which led to the arrest of the couple.
(Onmanorama is withholding the name of the accused in accordance with the law)