India, April 4 -- KANPUR The investigation into Kanpur's illegal organ trade has taken a dark turn as police reveal that the man involved in 40 to 50 kidney transplants was not a qualified doctor, but an operating theatre (OT) technician. The revelation comes alongside new evidence suggesting the racket has resulted in at least one patient's death.

The two OT technicians who identified him to the police had themselves assisted in at least one of those procedures. And an audio recording retrieved from the mobile phone of arrested broker, Shivam Aggarwal, suggests that at least one woman who underwent an illegal kidney transplant at a Kanpur hospital died subsequently at a hospital in Delhi. The police believe the racket may have claimed l...