The police investigation has been continuing against iBomma manager Ravi, who has become a headache for the film industry and the police for the past six years, from all angles. Ravi is said to have controlled hundreds of agents within the country and outside it. He has links with gaming app managers and more than 100 websites, wherein more than 21,000 pirated movies are hosted. The officials are said to be looking at how many people have supported him behind the scenes. Some important information is said to have come out during interrogation on the second day of his five-day custody. There are reports that questions were asked regarding links in the UK, Switzerland, and the Netherlands.
The pirated movies mostly were bought from various websites dealing in Tamil films. There is a suspicion that Ravi established an office in the Caribbean islands. He allegedly conducted the piracy operation with the help of technical staff in the UK. All movies uploaded by Ravi were in HD quality. He reportedly records the new releases in theaters using his cellphone, converts them to HD by using software, and then uploads them online.
Ravi allegedly funded the purchase of pirated movies with earnings that came through advertisements on betting apps. Website maintenance and online transactions are said to have been carried out by teams in the UK. Ravi, during investigation, reportedly revealed that he had got a driving license, PAN card, bank accounts, and foreign citizenship in the name of Prahlad Kumar without disclosing his identity. As per reports, around 20 employees work in the office in the Caribbean.
Personal Background
Ravi had to go through hard times since his childhood. His parents had separated when he was little. Ravi completed his B.Sc in computers despite problems. He told the police in Mumbai that during his early career, he survived on half-eaten food for a number of days. Later, after receiving IT training, he started IT companies in Hyderabad. Ravi married his loved one but later got separated due to marital issues. He has been living alone for the past four years, though he has an eight-year-old daughter. He reportedly told the police that earning money was a goal for him after going through lots of struggles in life. Current Status of Piracy Websites The police have removed only the iBomma and Bappam websites to date from the piracy platforms. However, precautions were taken so that no other sites get affected. According to the investigators, links from these two sites are capable of routing users to remaining piracy websites. More than 50 such sites are said to be operating in Tamil Nadu. The website of iBomma Tamil.com gives movie reviews and news. Ads appearing on the site reportedly route users to investment platforms. Earlier, the platform was mainly related to betting apps. In this context, investigators believe that iBomma websites have turned out to be a platform for greater cyber fraud activities.
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