Karnataka: Fake doctor steals gold jewelry from patients, arrested

A woman, dressed in a doctor's apron, allegedly stole two gold chains and a finger ring from two patients admitted to St Philomena's Hospital at Viveknagar in Karnataka. Police arrested her on the basis of the CCTV footage of the incident.

Bengaluru: Karnataka police have arrested a woman for allegedly stealing two gold chains and a finger ring from two patients admitted to St Philomena's Hospital at Viveknagar. She was caught on CCTV camera entering the hospital wearing a doctor's apron. The theft came to light when one of the patient's sons Ramesh found her gold chain had been replaced by a fake one, police said on Tuesday.

According to the police, Ramesh had admitted his mother to the hospital on January 14 due to breathing problems. When he went to his mother's ward, he noticed a woman in a white shirt who asked him to leave the room as she needed to check on his mother. He thought she was a doctor and waited outside. The woman then came out of the ward and told him not to disturb his mother for a while.

Meanwhile, when a nurse came to check on his mother, Ramesh told her a doctor had checked his mother a few minutes ago, but the nurse said no doctor had attended to the patient. He then realized that the other woman was not a doctor. Moreover, he noticed that his mother's gold chain and finger ring have been replaced with fake ones.

The woman was arrested based on the CCTV footage of the incident. During interrogation, she revealed that a person blackmailed and harassed her demanding money. "With no other quick option, I chose to steal gold from patients," she said. The police, however, are still investigating the veracity of her statement.