Nude videos of over 100 people with Maldivians arrested, 5 of them politicians

Sri Lankan police have said that nude videos and photos of over 100 people had been found with the two Maldivians arrested in the country on Saturday, in the case involving a Maldivian businessman blackmailed over nude videos and photographs of him.

Sunday Times reported that police revealed that the material confiscated included nude videos and photographs of five Maldivian political figures.

According to Sri Lankan police, the Maldivians arrested had been running the cybersex scam for over two years. And that over Rs. 60 million (MVR 6.5 million) in blackmail money had gone into their bank accounts.

An official from Cyber Crime Division of Sri Lankan police reported to Sunday Times that the blackmailers had been running the scam by using a Facebook handle in the name of a female to send friend requests, building a relationship with them, and then recording nude videos and photographs of them through Skype.

“As soon as the prospective victim switches on the webcam from the females side a pre-recorded video with nude pictures is played. In response the male on the other end too poses for a nude video which is then recorded and used for the blackmailing purpose,” explained the official to Sunday Times.

The two Maldivians were arrested from a hotel in Dehiwela with two laptops containing the incriminating material.

Maldivian businessman who filed the case complained that the scammers had demanded Rs. 9.8 million in blackmail money for the nude material they had of him.

Colombo Chief Magistrate Court has granted police permission to keep the two Maldivians under arrest until March 26 as police conduct further investigations.