In a shocking incident, a nineteen-year-old student from the Baselwa Colony in Old Faridabad has allegedly died by suicide after reportedly being blackmailed with artificial intelligence (AI)-generated deepfake images and videos of himself and his sisters, the police said on Sunday, as reported by News18.
The incident took place on Saturday evening. Two unidentified suspects allegedly demanded ₹20,000 from the student, Rahul Bharti, in return for not circulating the fabricated content on the internet.
Officials stated that the deceased, a B.Com student at a local college, had been suffering severe distress for the past ten days due to the relentless harassment, the News18 report said.
Smartphone Compromised
A senior officer from the NIT Police Station explained that the victim’s phone had been compromised, and the accused started threatening him via a messaging application.
Preliminary enquiries indicated that the accused had made repeated threats to the nineteen-year-old, allegedly driving him to ingest poison inside his room at around 7:00 PM on Saturday, the News18 report said.
A First Information Report (FIR) has been lodged against two unidentified suspects under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). His relatives told the police that Rahul had withdrawn from social contact and had been visibly distressed for several days prior to his death. His father, Manoj Bharti, recounted that Rahul’s behaviour had changed dramatically over the last fortnight. He ate very little, spoke infrequently, and spent lengthy periods alone in his room. The family were completely unaware he was under such severe psychological duress.
“We are trying to ascertain their identities, and they will soon be apprehended,” said Yashpal Yadav, public relations officer of the Faridabad Police, as reported by News18.
The police are also examining the victim’s phone records, chat history, and social media accounts to trace how the AI-generated content was created and shared.
On Saturday evening, Rahul reportedly consumed salphaz tablets in his room. When his condition deteriorated, his family rushed him to the hospital, but sadly, he could not be saved. Upon inspecting Rahul’s phone, his father found extensive messaging exchanges with a man named “Sahil”, who had allegedly generated and sent manipulated nude images and videos of Rahul and required ₹20,000 to cease their circulation.
In the final messages, Sahil purportedly threatened to post the material on the internet if the ransom was not met, and furthermore, incited Rahul to take his own life, even proposing the substance he could use.
The family also suspects that another associate, Neeraj Bharti, might have been implicated. Rahul’s final phone call on the day of the incident was reportedly with him. A formal complaint has been filed against the two suspects.
The Bharti family, originally from the Siwan district in Bihar, has resided in Faridabad for the past five decades. Manoj is employed as a driver, and Rahul is his youngest son. The family comprises three daughters and one son; two of the daughters are already married, whilst the youngest remains unmarried.
