Two college students and an electrician were arrested in Bengaluru for allegedly gang-raping a 19-year-old student by blackmailing her with an obscene video recorded without her consent.

Police said the arrests followed a complaint filed by the survivor, who studies at a private college in Bengaluru.

G Vikas (20), a student of Allied Health Sciences; N Prashant (20), a Bachelor of Commerce student; and their friend Chetan J (26) who are among the accused are all residents of Magadi town off Bengaluru.

They have been remanded to judicial custody at the Ramanagara district prison. Vikas and Prashant study at separate private colleges on the outskirts of the city and travel daily from Magadi to attend classes.

Police said Vikas became acquainted with the survivor through social media around six months ago. He is alleged to have taken her to a vacant house in Magadi belonging to Chetan, where he secretly filmed their intimate moments. The recordings were reportedly shared with Prashant and Chetan, who are accused of using the footage to threaten the survivor and force her into repeated sexual encounters. A police officer stated, “The accused were taken into custody immediately.”

The accused’s mobile phones have been sent to the forensic science laboratory for the recovery of deleted video files. Meanwhile, a senior official appealed to victims of sexual exploitation to come forward, stating that silence only empowers perpetrators. He emphasized that reporting such crimes at the earliest stage is crucial to stopping further abuse and holding those responsible accounts.

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