Six arrested for killing disabled man, staging it as accident to claim Rs 5.25 cr insurance money

Hosapete (Karnataka), Oct 6 (PTI) Six people were arrested for allegedly killing a disabled man and portraying it as an accident to fraudulently claim Rs 5.25 crore insurance money from multiple policies taken in his name, police said on Monday.

The deceased, identified as Gangadhar (34), was a resident of Kaulpet in Hosapete, the district headquarters of Vijayanagara district, they said.

He was killed on Wednesday by a gang of six people, including a woman, who allegedly posed as his wife, police said.

According to police, after attacking Gangadhar with blunt objects, the accused transported his body to the outskirts of Hosapete, placed it on a rented motorcycle, and rammed their car into the two-wheeler to make it appear as a road accident.

Investigators grew suspicious when they found the motorcycle keys kept inside a pouch on the vehicle, which is uncommon in accident cases, they said.

During the probe, police discovered that Gangadhar had been unwell and facing financial distress. Though he was already married, the accused allegedly registered a fake marriage in his name at a sub-registrar's office, police officials said.

With the help of a bank employee, who is alleged to be the mastermind behind the crime, they opened a bank account in Gangadhar's name with fake nominees and obtained six insurance policies worth Rs 5.25 crore, including an accident insurance policy, they added.

Investigation also revealed that it was the bank employee who used to target vulnerable people and share their details with the accused gang to help them execute such crimes to make money, police said, adding that further investigation is underway. PTI AMP KH