Kochi: The Ernakulam Central Police have launched an investigation into a heartless scam where a woman was allegedly cheated after being promised a priority organ donor for her critically ill husband.

The case, registered on Sunday, follows a complaint by Remya (43), a native of Ambalapuzha, whose husband Satheesh Chandran, a health department employee, has been battling severe liver and kidney ailments that require an urgent double transplantation.

According to the police, the deception began in May 2025 at a shopping mall on MG Road in Ernakulam. Desperate for a solution as her husband’s name remained low on the government’s Mrithasanjeevani (Kerala Network for Organ Sharing) waitlist, Remya and her family met with the accused, identified as Hari Prasad, whom they got to know through a relative.

Claiming he could bypass the lengthy official process and facilitate a donor through a private arrangement for a total payment of ₹26 lakh, Prasad allegedly convinced the family to provide an immediate financial advance to secure the deal.

Trusting his assurances, Remya made two digital transfers via UPI to mobile numbers provided by the accused, starting with ₹45,000 on May 15, followed by an additional ₹45,000 the very next day, from her husband’s account. Despite these payments totalling ₹90,000, the promised medical miracle never materialised.

“Compelled by the suffering of my husband and the exhaustion of constant hospital visits, we felt we had no choice but to explore paid donor options. A relative put us in touch with Hari Prasad, who convinced us he could find a match if we provided the funds. Trusting his word, we paid him ₹90,000 as an advance,” Remya told Onmanorama.

However, later they realised it was a fraud. “He did not find a donor as promised. He once brought a man to see us, but the blood group didn't even match my husband’s,” Remya said.

She explained that after several weeks of waiting, they demanded a refund, only for Prasad to start avoiding their calls before eventually going completely incommunicado.

The Ernakulam Central Police have now booked Hari Prasad under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023, specifically citing Section 316(2) for criminal breach of trust and Section 318(4) for cheating and dishonestly inducing the delivery of property. 

Police sources confirmed that an investigation is currently underway to trace the accused, whose full address remains unknown. “We are trying to collect the details of the transactions, but the accused’s phone is switched off,” a police officer said, adding that further action will be taken once they verify the financial trails of the UPI payments. 

The police also warned that the case is a grim reminder of the vulnerabilities faced by families navigating the high-stakes world of organ transplantation and the risks of engaging with unauthorised middlemen.