Key accused in FB love racket case arrested

According to police, Thirunavukkarasu (27), an MBA graduate from Makkinampatti, along with his friends N Sabarirajan (25), N Sathish (29), and T Vasanthakumar (22) befriended girls through the social networking site. They would then sexually abuse the victims and videograph the act to extort money from them.

Police said the accused lured several college girls and young women into relationships through social media. The incident came to light after a 19-year-old student of a private college gave a complaint to the Coimbatore rural police.

Though police managed to arrest his accomplices, Thirunavukkarasu went underground. Subsequently, political parties, including the DMK, staged protests demanding his arrest. Thirunavukkarasu, who released video and audio recordings claiming innocence, sought a CBI probe to unravel the truth.

After evading police action for the past two weeks, the main accused visited his house in Pollachi on Tuesday, when the police finally arrested him. Police are grilling him to ascertain the number of women he had duped. It is being claimed that more than 50 women were sexually abused by his gang. Further inquiries are on.