Gang selling babies for Rs 2-3 lakh busted in Karnataka's Tumakuru | Bangalore News

According to police sources, the gang had a habit of identifying childless couples and targeting single mothers or women who had become pregnant following an extramarital affair. They allegedly took pregnant women to hospitals, created fake birth certificates once the babies were born, and then sold them.

French Police identified the arrested accused as UD Mahesh, 39, managing director of a nursing college in Tumakuru; Mehaboob Shariff, 52, a pharmacist at a government primary health care center (PHC) at Goobehalli in Tumakuru district; Poornima, 39, a nurse at a government PHC in Dodderi; Soujanya, nurse at a public hospital in Shira; KN Ramakrishnappa, 53, tattoo artist; Hanumatharaju, 45, resident of Tumakuru town; and Mubarak Pasha, 44, a rickshaw driver who had bought a child.

Police focused on the gang after a couple approached them on June 9 and reported the loss of their 11-month-old baby while they were sleeping near a temple. A special police team went in search of the baby and arrested Ramakrishnappa and Hanumatharaju.

During their interrogation, the accused allegedly revealed that they had sold numerous children to childless couples. Police said Wednesday they may be part of a larger racket.