FBI arrests IITian for ‘blackmailing’ top US official

An India-born IITian Rajadata A Patkar has been arrested by the United States Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) for allegedly blackmailing a top Hawai official over an alleged “sexual exploitation” case in the country.

Rajada has been in the custody of the US police since March 3, 2007 for allegedly blackmailing Robert alias Bob Awana, the Secretary to the Governor of Hawai, over the latter’s alleged sexual exploitation of Jullie Mae, a Philippine national and the girlfriend of the accused.

The allegation against Rajadata was that while working in Tokyo, he had hacked the e-mail ID of his girlfriend from which, he came to know about her alleged sexual exploitation by the US official.

Subsequently, it was alleged that Rajadata had started blackmailing Awana and had even reportedly pocketed about $4,000, a charge that has been since been denied by him.

Rajadata, according to the information provided by his family members, has also been the Japanese interpreter for the late former Prime Minister PV Narasimha Rao.

In a habeas petition filed before the Supreme Court on Monday, Patkar’s mother Snehalata Patkar sought production of her son in India on the ground that his arrest by the US police was on “false charges”. She held that the arrest was illegal and Rajadata, being an Indian citizen, can be tried only in India for the alleged offence.

However, a bench of Justices Arijit Pasayat and DK Jain rejected the petition on the reasoning that it cannot give any directions to the US administration.