A 36-year-old Ambala Cantt resident alleged that he fell prey to an extortion scam after a woman approached him for lift while he was returning home from Chandigarh last month.
When he followed her into the hotel lobby to retrieve his phone, she allegedly created a commotion, prompting two hotel employees to intervene and support her. He alleged that he was subsequently forced to disclose the passcodes for his phone and PhonePe application. She then allegedly snatched Upadhyay’s iPhone 15 and demanded ₹ 5,000. Once outside the hotel, the woman allegedly increased her demand to ₹ 50,000 while threatening Upadhyay with legal action.
The complainant said that when they reached Kartik Hotel on the Chandigarh-Ambala road, the woman allegedly asked Upadhyay to stop.
Before the three friends could make sense of what was going on, the woman allegedly got out, photographed the trio and threatened to file a police complaint against him, the FIR stated.
