Pune police are investigating a suspected cyber-extortion angle in the death of a 22-year-old Accenture employee after his father alleged that a caller posing as a police officer threatened to implicate him in a false drug case and repeatedly demanded money.
The deceased, Shikhar Saxena, originally from Haridwar in Uttarakhand, had moved to Pune in July for work and died on October 1. Following a complaint by his father, Kumargaurav Saxena, police registered an FIR on October 14 against a man identified as Ajay Kumar Bhatia and another unidentified person.
The case has been registered under Sections 108, 308(6), 351(4) and 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. The sections cited in the FIR relate to allegations including abetment of suicide, extortion-related threats, criminal intimidation and acts committed with common intention.
Police Sub-Inspector Santosh Mhetre said investigators were examining the possibility of a cyber scam while pursuing other leads. Senior Police Inspector Sanjay Chavan, who is in charge of Kharadi police station, said preliminary findings indicated that the accused was not a police officer. Police are searching for the suspect, believed to be living outside Maharashtra, and are investigating how he first came into contact with Saxena.
According to the father’s complaint, Saxena’s mother received a call on September 30 from a man who demanded to speak to her son. The caller later allegedly introduced himself to Saxena’s father as Ajay Kumar Bhatia, claimed to be his son’s friend and asked for a PDF document. In another conversation, he reportedly said he had met Saxena while playing PUBG online. The father disputed that account, saying his son did not play the game.
The complaint states that the caller later claimed to be a police sub-inspector posted in Sector 29, Gurgaon, Haryana. He allegedly said a complaint had been received accusing Saxena of supplying or selling drugs to women in Pune, and threatened him with arrest while demanding an active phone number. The allegation about drug involvement was made by the caller; the FIR records the father’s claim that his son was being threatened with implication in a false case.
The family also learnt that the same caller had contacted one of Saxena’s acquaintances to obtain his current phone number. When the family could not reach him, his maternal uncle, who lives in Pune, went to his paying-guest accommodation in Kharadi. The owner reportedly said Saxena had left at about 5.30 p.m. on September 30. After an unsuccessful search, the uncle approached Kharadi police, where an earlier missing-person case was registered under Section 140(3) of the BNS.
The family was informed of Saxena’s death the following morning. He was taken to Sassoon General Hospital, where he was declared dead, according to the complaint. The father later said that an examination of Saxena’s laptop by his maternal uncle revealed WhatsApp activity dated September 29, transfers to different bank accounts and screenshots of those transactions allegedly sent to Bhatia. The family also reported finding suspicious chats, although the FIR does not specify the total amount transferred.
On October 13, the father received another call from a different number. The caller claimed to be from a courier office and asked about Saxena and a returned parcel before disconnecting when questioned. The father suspects a connection between that call and the earlier caller, but police have not established the link.
Investigators are trying to unlock Saxena’s password-protected mobile phone and trace the digital and personal links between him and the suspects. The probe will determine whether the alleged calls, money transfers and online communications formed part of a cybercrime operation.
