Wolf in Sheep’s clothing

Two go to help accident victim, ask for PhonePe PIN and loot him instead

Hunsur: In the aftermath of road accidents, victims often face not only physical trauma but also opportunistic crimes, with bystanders or passersby sometimes stealing valuables such as wallets, mobile phones or gold ornaments from the injured.

In one such incident, the Mysuru District Cybercrime, Economic Offences and Narcotics (CEN) Police have arrested two persons for allegedly robbing Rs. 80,000 through an online transfer after posing as good samaritans and promising to take an injured man to a hospital.

The incident occurred around midnight on Dec. 16 when Ganesh, a resident of Benkipura village in Hunsur taluk, was returning home from his factory at Kadakola near Nanjangud on a two-wheeler. He reportedly hit a dog that was crossing the road, was thrown off the vehicle and fell unconscious. After regaining consciousness, Ganesh, still disoriented, heard two men assuring him that they would take him to a hospital.

Money transfer from victim

The accused — later identified as Ramesh of Mahadevapura and Manu of Railway Layout, Ramabainagar — allegedly took Ganesh’s smartphone and attempted to transfer money using online payment apps. When they failed to do so due to the lack of a PIN, they asked Ganesh to reveal it, promising medical assistance.

Trusting them and unaware of their intentions, Ganesh disclosed the PIN. The accused then transferred Rs. 80,000 from his PhonePe account and abandoned him on the road around 1 am in the biting cold.

To wife’s account

Police said Ramesh transferred Rs. 60,000 to his wife’s online wallet, while Manu transferred Rs. 20,000 to his own account.

Soon after the accused fled, passersby helped Ganesh obtain medical assistance. He later informed his brother, Ankanayaka, about the incident. On Dec. 19, Ankanayaka lodged a complaint at the District Cybercrime, Economic Offences and Narcotics (CEN) Police Station.

Taking serious note of the crime committed under the guise of humanity, Superintendent of Police N. Vishnuvardhana, along with Additional SPs C. Mallik and L. Nagesh, constituted a special team to nab the accused.

The team, led by CEN Deputy Superintendent of Police R. Srikanth and Inspector S.P. Sunil, traced the phone numbers linked to the PhonePe transactions and arrested the accused at Ramabainagar.

CEN Sub-Inspector Suresh Bopanna and staff members S. Manjunath, H.V. Rangaswamy, and Basavaraju were part of the investigating team.

‘A lesson to society’

It is unfortunate that instead of helping accident victims, some people now rob them of cash and valuables while they are writhing in pain on the road. There have been several instances where passers-by have taken photographs, videos and even selfies with accident victims, instead of rushing them to a hospital. Such behaviour is inhuman. We treated the case in which the victim was robbed of Rs. 80,000 as a challenge and arrested the accused based on technical data and other clues. This should serve as a lesson to society. — N. Vishnuvardhana, Superintendent of Police, Mysuru