Mumbai police have registered a case against a woman for allegedly extorting a significant sum of money from a 58-year-old hotelier based in Ghatkopar. The accused faces charges of financial exploitation, criminal intimidation, and extortion after the complainant detailed a pattern of demands and threats over a prolonged period.
Consensual Relationship Turns Sour
The case, filed at the Parksite police station, involves the hotelier, who owns and operates three establishments in Mumbai, and a woman identified as Poonam Shetty. According to the First Information Report (FIR), the two met at his restaurant in 2022. Shetty initially presented herself as divorced, and the acquaintance soon developed into a close personal relationship.
The complainant stated that over time, Shetty began requesting financial assistance on various pretexts. He complied, transferring money to her through both cash and online bank transactions. The financial demands allegedly intensified, with a particularly large sum being given between September and December 2024. During this short span, the hotelier claims to have paid her approximately ₹22 lakh.
Escalation to Threats and False Cases
The situation took a darker turn when the woman's demands escalated. The hotelier alleged that Shetty later threatened him with social defamation. She presented an ultimatum: either a massive one-time payment of ₹2 crore or a lifelong monthly stipend of ₹1 lakh. He was warned that failure to meet these demands would result in her filing false legal cases against him.
The intimidation allegedly became more personal last year when Shetty visited the complainant's residence. There, she informed his family members that she was pregnant and reiterated her monetary demands. This incident reportedly pushed the hotelier to take formal action. After he lodged written complaints at the Parksite and Ghatkopar police stations in December 2025, the woman retaliated by filing a rape case against him at the Ghatkopar Police Station.
Police Action and Past Transactions
Based on the hotelier's complaint, the Parksite police have officially booked Poonam Shetty under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code for extortion and criminal intimidation. The investigation is now underway.
Further digging into the financial timeline reveals earlier substantial payments. The complainant stated that even back in October-November 2023, he had paid Shetty ₹10 lakh after she claimed to be pregnant. This pattern of leveraging personal situations for financial gain forms the crux of the financial exploitation charges now being investigated by the authorities.
