Conman cheats Lalbaug man of Rs 1L, promising hospital bed for kin

Smelling opportunity at a time when a hospital bed cannot be had for the love of humanity or divinity, a conman cheated a Lalbaug resident out of Rs 1 lakh, by promising to arrange a bed for the latter's ailing brother in a private hospital. A man, reportedly in his midtwenties, duped Ravindra Rawle aka Bala, 61, on the pretext of finding a hospital bed for Rawle's brother, Ramesh, 63, who is famous for making Ganesh idols.

On May 26, Ramesh, who was admitted to KEM Hospital for the treatment of kidney stones, suddenly found he was having trouble breathing. "In the current pandemic, the government hospital is stretched to its limit and it is impossible for them to give proper attention to other patients. A few days after my brother was admitted, I was called to the hospital and when I saw the conditions there, I thought it would be best to shift him to a private hospital," said Ravindra, a retired income tax employee.

"At the hospital, a man identifying himself as Vicky Salvi approached me and claimed that he worked at KEM and asked me to shift my brother to a private hospital," said Ravindra. Salvi then took Ravindra to three private hospitals and at the third hospital, he claimed he had arranged for a bed but said the hospital wanted Rs 1 lakh as a deposit.

"At KEM, Salvi claimed that in order to re-enter the hospital, he needed to wear personal protective gear and disappeared, never to return again. It was around 8pm when we reached the hosp, I looked for him for hours but he was nowhere. Around 12.30am, I informed my family about the scam and returned home," he said.

The following day, Ravindra went to Bhoiwada police station and lodged a complaint.