New Delhi: The Delhi Police has made an announcement regarding the arrest of a 24 year individual, in connection with the creation and distribution of a video featuring the popular actor Rashmika Mandanna. The person apprehended has been identified as Eemani Naveen. Was taken into custody in Andhra Pradeshs Guntur district.
Naveen, who holds a B tech degree from an engineering college in Chennai allegedly created and shared deepfake videos of Mandanna on social media platforms causing widespread concerns. These videos gained attention not from Prime Minister Narendra Modi but from prominent figures like Amitabh Bachchan.
During a press briefing, Hemant Tiwari, the Deputy Commissioner of Police from the Intelligence Fusion and Strategic Operations (IFSO) Unit revealed that Naveen was arrested. Tiwari mentioned that Naveen managed a fan page dedicated to Rashmika Mandanna along with two celebrity fan pages. The police recovered a laptop and mobile phone from him. Efforts are being made to retrieve any deleted data.
The arrest came after it was discovered that Naveen had deleted incriminating posts from his Instagram channel and changed its name due, to controversy.
The individual, who is 24 years old also made sure to erase any data from their devices.
Regarding the deepfake video, in question which depicted an AI generated scenario featuring a Rashmika Mandanna lookalike wearing a swimsuit it surfaced online in November of the previous year and sparked discussions on digital safety. As part of the police investigation over 500 social media accounts associated with these alleged deepfake videos were thoroughly examined.
"The Cyber Lab extensively analyzed these videos. After conducting investigations and questioning suspects we were eventually able to trace the account responsible on Instagram " stated the police. The investigation further revealed that the original video featuring an girl was posted on October 9 2023 while the deepfake version was uploaded on October 13 2023. Naveen, a self proclaimed fan of the actress admitted to creating the deepfake video with the intention of boosting followers for their fan page. Within two weeks the follower count surged from 90,000 to 108,000.
The Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) from IFSO Unit (Identity Fraud and Social Offenses Unit) disclosed that during questioning and investigation sessions with Naveen revealed that they had completed a Digital Marketing certification from Google Garage back in 2019. Authorities have seized a laptop and three mobile phones which were, in Naveens possession.
