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BENGALURU: A special CBI court in Dharwad on Thursday convicted 12 men, including a former medical officer, a former police constable and an advocate in a case of insurance fraud.

The judge, HC Sham Prasad, sentenced the convicts to three years of rigorous imprisonment and fined them Rs 79,500 each. Failure to pay the fine would result in an additional six months of rigorous imprisonment, he ruled.

According to a copy of the judgment, the convicts are SD Patil, 31, Mohan P Kalekar, 49, Jayaram Bhima Kamble, 60, Raju Dundappa Uppa, 37, Hasan Mugutsab Shivapuri, 42, Dr Rajkumar B, 46, Kempanna Siddappa Vodeyar, 27, Basappa Lakshman Herevoli, 35, Bhimappa Gireppa Totagi, 50, Lakkappa Ningappa Bilade, 31, Shivappa Buramappa Banase, 45 and Ravi Mulkun Bhosale, 26. They were residents of Belagavi and nearby areas.

Patil was an advocate, Kalekar the deputy chief medical officer at MGM Hospital in Nipani, Belagavi, and Bhima Kamble a head constable with Nipani Rural police.

The prosecution’s case was that the convicts fraudulently claimed insurance by producing documents purporting to show that five people were grievously injured in an accident near Nippani on May 31, 2005.

A complaint registered with Nipani Rural police said a multi utility vehicle, ( Tempo Trax, KA37 M668) was involved in the accident. The injured approached Oriental Insurance Company with a claim of Rs 20 lakh.

The company, which grew suspicious about the accident after a spot visit and preliminary inquiries, lodged a complaint with Nipani Rural police. Since some of the accused were government servants including policemen, the case was transferred to the CBI’s Anti-Corruption Bureau.