MBA grad who sold his kidney, spins racket on web, dupes many

HYDERABAD: An MBA postgraduate has been arrested for allegedly duping several patients suffering from kidney ailments on the promise that he would arrange donors for them. The accused made off with crores of rupees, police said.
Instead of arranging kidney donors, the 25-year-old splurged the money on himself and squandered it at casinos in Sri Lanka. He spun his web of deceit on the social media and through personal contacts.
Banjara Hills police arrested D Shanmukha Pavan Srinivas, 25, from his residence at Vanasthalipuram on Friday. Ironically, the culprit got into the racket after he himself sold his kidney to overcome his financial woes. He reportedly invested heavily in the stock market and suffered losses several months ago.
To tide over the financial crisis, Srinivas decided to sell his kidney and went to Sri Lanka. In the island nation, he came in contact with several doctors and agents. Srinivas decided to become an agent to earn easy money by facilitating donors for persons in need of a kidney, police said. He reportedly collected between ?30 lakh and ?50 lakh from each patient to arrange a donor.
A few days ago, Banjara Hills police had received a complaint from a woman, who claimed her husband, whose kidney failed and was on dialysis, came in contact with Srinivas through another patient.
Came in contact with 30 patients
Srinivas, a native of Guntur in Andhra Pradesh, promised to help them in arranging a kidney donor by using his contacts in Sri Lanka and Turkey.
Srinivas collected ?34 lakh and photo copies of the patient’s passport. However, after collecting the money, he failed to arrange a donor.
“During investigation, we came to know that till now he came in contact with at least 30 patients. He arranged kidney donors for seven patients, but duped the rest,’’ Banjara Hills inspector Kalinga Rao told TOI.
“Srinivas collected ?34 lakh from the complainant and spent the amount at casinos in Sri Lanka,’’ joint commissioner of police (West Zone) AR Srinivas said.
In the past, the accused was involved in three different cases registered in Hyderabad and Andhra Pradesh. He was also detained by the Sri Lankan authorities two years ago for overstaying.
Based on phone and and other technical details, he was tracked and arrested from his residence on Friday.
He was subsequently remanded in judicial custody.