“You Must Have Sex:” Deaf Man Disagrees and Gets Assaulted by 5
A Deaf man, Amal Dev, was lured via Instagram to a hotel in Kochi, assaulted and targeted in a blackmail plot, but escaped and helped police arrest most of the accused.
In the digital age, a "follow" or a "like" can feel like the start of a genuine connection. For Amal Dev, a 30-year-old delivery rider from Kollam, Kerala, it was the beginning of a nightmare that nearly cost him his life.
It started on Instagram. A woman named Safna began messaging Amal, claiming she had a special interest in communicating with the Deaf community. Though a mutual friend warned Amal that Safna’s reputation was clouded, her persistence eventually wore down his defenses.
While their WhatsApp chats remained casual, the tone on Instagram was different—darker and more suggestive. Safna repeatedly pressured Amal to meet her in a private hotel room in Kochi. On February 22, 2026, Amal finally agreed, bringing a carton of mango juice as a small gesture of friendship.
The moment Amal stepped into Room 404, the "friendship" evaporated. The door was kicked shut and locked. From the shadows of the bathroom and the corners of the disheveled room, four men emerged.
What followed was five hours of systematic torture.
The group—identified as Amal Venugopal, Anand Murugan, John Rahul, and Sanju—along with Safna, had a singular goal: to film Amal in a compromising position to blackmail him for money. When Amal bravely refused to participate in their scheme, the extortion plot devolved into a feeding frenzy of violence. They stripped him naked and beat him relentlessly.
Amal suffered a fractured rib, a spine injury, and deep cuts. At one point, a heavy blow was aimed at his head. Amal instinctively blocked it with his left hand—an act the police later said likely saved his life. They even destroyed his legal documents—his license and insurance—simply to deepen his distress.
Near midnight, bruised and barely conscious, Amal was dumped outside. Despite threats that he would be killed if he spoke, Amal chose courage over silence.
With the help of a sign language interpreter and a dedicated hearing friend, Amal gave a detailed statement to the Kerala police.
Footage confirmed the suspects' presence and Amal’s distressed state. Although the attackers deleted the evidence from Amal's phone, the police recovered incriminating data from the suspects' devices.
Within 72 hours, all five suspects, including Safna and the "Swiggy" worker who joined the assault, were behind bars.
Amal Dev is now recovering, but he chose to share his story with ISH News not for pity, but for protection. He admits he ignored the red flags and the warnings of his friends.
"I want this to be a lesson," Amal shared. "Do not get emotionally involved with strangers on social media. Maintain your distance. Be alert."
Amal’s refusal to back down—even when his attackers begged him to withdraw the case in exchange for their freedom—ensures that these predators can no longer target the vulnerable.
