Fake doctor cheats father of ailing child of Rs 1 lakh in Visakhapatnam

City police have arrested a 37-year-old man for allegedly posing as a doctor and cheating the father of a five-year-old child suffering from a kidney ailment of Rs 1 lakh.

The case was registered at the I Town Police Station on February 27 based on a complaint filed by Dusi Ramji, a resident of Narasannapeta in Srikakulam district. His son has been undergoing treatment at KIMS Hospital in Visakhapatnam since July 2024.

According to police, the child was first treated at Osmania Hospital in Hyderabad and later referred to government hospitals in Andhra Pradesh. As the child’s condition worsened, doctors advised a kidney transplant, leaving the family under financial stress.

On February 22, Ramji published an appeal in a local newspaper seeking financial help for the surgery. Three days later, he received a phone call from a man who introduced himself as Dr Narasimham and claimed he had received the child’s details from the Andhra Pradesh government. The caller asked him to visit King George Hospital with medical records.

At KGH, another man wearing a white coat approached the family, introduced himself as Dr Praveen, and claimed to be a postgraduate doctor. He allegedly took them near the superintendent’s office and demanded ₹1 lakh, saying it was needed to move forward with treatment.

Later that evening, Ramji was asked to bring the money to the hospital. Believing the claims, he handed over the cash. He later realised that he had been cheated and approached the police.

Police have launched an investigation into the incident.