85,000 — another elderly man narrowly escaped a similar scam in Vijayanagar 3rd Stage on Sept. 20. Having read about similar scams in SOM, Thammaiah suspected foul play and deliberately chose not to stop his vehicle. “Moments later, a man on a two-wheeler came up alongside my car, shouting ‘Gowdre!’ loudly, trying to get my attention. Modus operandiAccording to Thammaiah, the criminal aimed to force him to stop, check his vehicle and then create a fake accident scenario to demand money. Concerned that the suspect might still be lurking in the area, Thammaiah avoided returning home via Bunts Samaja Road.