Delhi Police's Crime Branch has busted a major kidney racket. According to the police, this racket has carried out 34 illegal transplants in a short period. The network of this racket extended beyond Delhi to four other states: Gujarat, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, and Uttar Pradesh.
The Crime Branch had information about these networks operating from Delhi and was gathering evidence related to the gang. A woman then contacted the police and revealed that a man had taken 3.5 million rupees for her husband's kidney transplant, which never took place, resulting in her husband's death.
The Gang Conducted 34 Kidney Transplants
The police registered an FIR based on the woman's complaint and started investigating. They found out that the racket was operated by a man named Sandeep Arya. However, the police couldn't locate Sandeep. During the investigation, the police got information about Sandeep's close aide, Sumit, tracked him down, and arrested him. Based on the information provided by Sumit, the police arrested the mastermind Sandeep Arya and his associate Devendra from Goa.
According to DCP Crime Amit Goyalk, after the arrest of mastermind Sandeep Arya, all the secrets of this racket were revealed. During interrogation, Sandeep confessed to having performed 34 transplants. These operations were conducted in 11 hospitals across five states. Each operation cost between 3.5 to 4 million rupees. The money was distributed among the main 8 gang members based on their roles.
According to the Delhi Police, the lion's share of the 3.5 to 4 million rupees went to mastermind Sandeep Arya, who kept 500 thousand rupees for himself. About 500 thousand was given to the donor, while the other members received between 100 thousand to 200 thousand rupees each.
How Did the Gang Operate?
Each member of this racket had a specific role. Some found donors, others arranged for patients, some prepared fake documents, and others trained the donors to appear like the patients' relatives in front of the screening committee.
To avoid suspicion from the screening committee, they thoroughly trained the donors to make them look like the patients' relatives. They even presented photos of the donors and patients together to the committee to avoid any doubt.
One gang member was connected to 122 different social media groups to find donors. To collect patient information, gang members worked as transplant coordinators in large hospitals. They would then pass the information to the gang's leader Sandeep, who would train the donors to appear before the transplant coordinator committee.
Profiles and Roles of the Arrested Individuals
Sandeep Arya
Sandeep Arya, a resident of Noida, was the leader of this gang. Sandeep had done an MBA in Public Health. He had worked as a transplant coordinator in several hospitals in Faridabad, Delhi, Gurgaon, Indore, and Baroda. This is where he got the idea of illegal transplants. Sandeep formed a gang, negotiated with patients, and within a short period conducted 34 illegal transplants.
Sandeep charged 3.5 to 4 million rupees from each patient, which included the hospital bill. His commission was 500 thousand to 600 thousand rupees. Sandeep's relative Devendra, who studied up to the 10th grade, had given his account to Sandeep. Devendra collected money from patients on behalf of Sandeep. He had taken 700 thousand rupees in his account from the woman whose complaint led to the FIR.
Vijay Kumar
Vijay Kumar from Lucknow came in contact with Sandeep when he sold his own kidney for money. After that, he started working for Sandeep. Vijay's job was to train donors so that they appeared like the patient's family members, matching their clothes and language. He was paid 50 thousand rupees for each case.
Puneet Kumar
Puneet Kumar from Agra completed a degree in Hospital Management in 2018. He worked in seven major hospitals across different states. Upon coming into contact with Sandeep, Puneet started creating fake documents for him. He was working as a transplant coordinator in a hospital in Agra. Puneet was paid between 50 thousand to 100 thousand rupees per case.
Hanif Sheikh
Hanif Sheikh from Mumbai had a story similar to Vijay Kumar's. Hanif was a tailor in Mumbai but suffered losses. Through a Facebook page, he contacted Sandeep Arya and sold his kidney for money. He then started working for Sandeep. He was paid 50 thousand rupees for bringing in donors and 500 thousand rupees for bringing in patients.
Chika Prashanth
Chika also sold his kidney to Sandeep for money. After joining Sandeep's gang, Chika received training and was given a job as a transplant coordinator in a hospital. With his help, Sandeep conducted three kidney transplants. Chika was paid 100 thousand rupees for each case.
Tej Prakash
Tej Prakash needed a kidney for his wife. Through Sandeep, he arranged a kidney for his wife and then started providing patients for Sandeep. Tej Prakash was paid 500 thousand rupees for each case.
Rohit Khanna
Rohit Khanna was responsible for finding kidney donors. He was connected to 122 different social media groups. Rohit had 26 email IDs through which he stayed in touch with donors. The police recovered 34 fake stamps used for creating forged documents from the accused. These stamps were in the name of officials from different states. Fake files of kidney donors and patients were found. The police also recovered laptops, 17 mobile phones, 9 SIM cards, and a Mercedes car from Sandeep. Sandeep used this Mercedes to impress donors and patients.
