CHENNAI, India — Police in Chennai have arrested a fortune teller accused of persuading a Canadian woman of Sri Lankan Tamil origin to appear naked during video calls as part of an astrological ritual, secretly recording the calls and later using the footage to extort money and demand sex from her, police said.
The suspect, Isakki Muthu, 45, was arrested in Courtallam in Tamil Nadu’s Tenkasi district after officers traced his cellphone. Police seized his phone and are investigating whether other women may have been targeted in a similar manner.
The woman, 37, had traveled to Tamil Nadu several months ago and was staying in Chennai.
Police said she met Mr. Muthu while visiting Besant Nagar beach, where he worked as a kili josiyar, or parrot astrologer, a traditional form of fortune-telling in which a trained parrot selects cards that are then interpreted for customers.
During their conversation, Mr. Muthu referred to details of the woman’s personal life, including her divorce and her mother’s cancer. His apparent knowledge of those circumstances surprised her and helped him gain her trust, police said.
He allegedly told her that her horoscope showed an unfavorable planetary alignment and that she was suffering from the influence of Saturn. He warned that she could develop cancer like her mother unless she underwent a special ritual, for which he initially sought about 20,000 Indian rupees.
Police said Mr. Muthu later instructed the woman to stand naked in her room at midnight during a video call, telling her that he would conduct a yagam, or fire ritual, at a temple to remove the astrological affliction.
Believing him, the woman followed his instructions. Police said she was made to take part in such video calls more than five times.
Mr. Muthu then allegedly told her that he had secretly recorded the calls and threatened to publish the footage online unless she paid him as much as 500,000 rupees.
Fearing that the videos would be released, the woman paid him about 70,000 rupees, police said.
The alleged blackmail later escalated. Police said Mr. Muthu used the recordings to demand sex from the woman, prompting her to file a complaint with the Mambalam All Women Police Station in Chennai.
Investigators traced the cellphone number he had used to contact the woman and examined the number linked to the Google Pay account through which she had transferred money.
A police source familiar with the investigation told Jaffna Monitor that members of the Sri Lankan Tamil diaspora visiting Tamil Nadu are frequently targeted by scammers who perceive people living in countries such as Canada, Britain and Australia as wealthy.
The source said that perception can make diaspora visitors attractive targets for fraud and urged Sri Lankan Tamils traveling in Tamil Nadu to be cautious when approached by people seeking money for astrology, religious rituals or other purported remedies.
Police identified Mr. Muthu as a resident of Bala Marthandapuram, near Kadayanallur in Tenkasi district. He had worked as a religious medium at a Karuppasamy temple in his village as well as a parrot astrologer.
A special police team tracked his cellphone signal to Courtallam and arrested him on Thursday. He was taken to Chennai, where investigators seized his phone.
Police are examining the device to determine whether Mr. Muthu recorded other women or used similar rituals to extort money from them.
