04 March,2026 01:00 PM IST | Thane | mid-day online correspondent
The accused was taken into custody following a complaint by the girl`s parents. Representational Pic/File
A 23-year-old man has been arrested for allegedly extorting Rs 50,000 from a 15-year-old schoolgirl over six months in Thane city in Maharashtra, police said on Wednesday, reported the PTI.
The accused, a resident of Lokmanya Nagar, was taken into custody following a complaint by the girl's parents on March 1.
A police official from the Vartak Nagar police station said he targeted the teenager between September 2025 and February 2026. "On multiple occasions, he took her to isolated locations and molested her," the official said, citing the FIR, according to the PTI.
The accused threatened to inform the girl's parents about their purported "relationship" and extracted a total of Rs 50,000 from her, he said.
"Unable to bear the persistent threats and financial demands, the girl finally confided in her parents, who approached the police," the official said.
The suspect has been booked under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, he said, adding that further investigation was underway, the news agency reported.
Meanwhile, in an another incident, the police in Thane have invoked the stringent Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) against four men accused of assaulting a local resident and injuring a police officer, according to the PTI.
The case was registered on Monday in connection with an incident that occurred on March 1 in the Kalwa East area.
According to police, the accused allegedly attacked a man.
An official from Kalwa police station said one of the accused reportedly brandished a knife in a public area, issuing threats and challenging anyone to lodge a complaint.
When officers attempted to apprehend the suspects, one of them allegedly attacked a policeman and slashed his right thumb with a blade.
The injured officer received medical attention, police confirmed.
Police said that two of the four suspects had already been externed from the limits of Thane district prior to the incident.
The four accused have been booked under relevant sections of the BNS as well as MCOCA. Authorities are continuing efforts to trace and arrest them.
Further investigation is underway.
(with PTI inputs)
