Couple arrested for drugging patients and stealing gold by posing as medical professionals in Hyderabad hospitals

Couple arrested for drugging hospital patients and stealing gold by posing as medical professionals in Hyderabad.

Two persons, including a woman posing as a medical professional, were arrested for drugging patients and stealing gold ornaments from hospitals across the city.

The accused, identified as 25-year-old Goundla Shirisha, a Pharm.D student from Vikarabad, and her 30-year-old husband Edulapally Sai Kumar Goud, were apprehended on Monday, March 16, by the Commissioner’s Task Force, Secunderabad Zone along with the Market police of Malkajgiri commissionerate.

According to the police, the duo targeted elderly female patients undergoing treatment at hospitals. Shirisha, leveraging her medical background, administered sedative injections to render victims unconscious before stealing their gold ornaments.

Investigators said the accused used diazepam, a sedative drug, to carry out the crimes. In one instance on March 11, Shirisha entered Yashoda Hospital in Secunderabad posing as a healthcare worker, concealed the injection in her apron, and sedated a patient before fleeing with gold ornaments.

Police said the couple was also involved in a similar offence at Citizen Speciality Hospital in Chandanagar under the Cyberabad commissionerate, where they followed the same modus operandi.

Following their arrest, police recovered gold ornaments weighing about 11 tolas, two mobile phones and a car used to commit these offences. Officials said the stolen property had partly been disposed of, with proceeds spent on personal expenses. Further investigation is underway.