A 28-year-old man from Rajasthan has been arrested in connection with an investigation into deepfake videos featuring Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay that were circulated on social media.
The accused, identified as Shyabu Khan from Boontoli in Alwar, was arrested in Rajasthan on Saturday by the Tamil Nadu Crime Branch-Criminal Investigation Department (CB-CID).
The arrest followed a technical investigation into the origin and circulation of the manipulated videos. Two CB-CID teams searched locations in Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh while working to trace those allegedly involved in creating and distributing the content.
Police Seize Digital Devices
During the operation, investigators seized Khan’s mobile phones, SIM cards and computer processing units (CPUs). He was subsequently taken to Chennai and remanded to judicial custody.
Tamil Nadu Police chief Mahesh Kumar Aggarwal said investigators used technical analysis to identify the accused despite difficulties in tracing the digital trail.
The CB-CID is now examining whether Khan allegedly acted on his own or was connected to a wider group involved in producing or circulating the videos.
Deepfake Videos Under Investigation
The case was registered under provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and the Information Technology Act after manipulated videos featuring Vijay with Hindi audio surfaced on Facebook and other social media platforms last month.
Investigators are also looking into the circulation of the videos through Facebook accounts that allegedly appeared to operate from Pakistan.
Police are trying to establish who controlled those accounts and whether there was any connection between the accounts and the accused arrested in Rajasthan.
Alleged Fraud Using Manipulated Videos
The CB-CID’s investigation has also indicated that the videos may have been used to deceive people in Madhya Pradesh and other states.
Police have approached Facebook to remove the disputed videos as they continue to track how the content was created, uploaded and distributed.
Investigators are examining the digital devices seized from Khan along with other evidence to determine the extent of the alleged operation and identify any additional people who may have participated in it.
