Three residents of Kazakhstan's capital have gone on trial for kidnapping and extortion after creating fake profiles of young women on Telegram to lure men into meetings and then demand money from them, the website infohub.kz reports.
According to NUR.KZ, citing the Prosecutor General's Office, the convicted men had three victims. The perpetrators extorted money from the victims by threatening to distribute compromising video recordings.
"Through extortion, the perpetrators seized 2.2 million tenge from 3 victims. One victim was forced to take out a microloan, while another was deprived of his car. The state prosecutor fully proved the guilt of the defendants in court," the supervisory authority said.
Under the court's verdict, the three defendants were sentenced to between 7 and 8 years in prison for kidnapping and extortion.
"The victims' civil claims for damages were satisfied. The verdict has entered into force. The capital's prosecutor's office urges citizens to exercise caution when meeting people on social networks and messaging apps, and warns that kidnapping and extortion committed under aggravating circumstances carry criminal liability of up to 12 years in prison with confiscation of property," the Prosecutor General's Office added.