A quack accused of infecting around 40 persons with HIV due to use of same syringe on several patients in Unnao district of Uttar Pradesh was arrested on Wednesday, police said.

Rajesh Yadav, the quack, was arrested from Bangarmau town in the district. A case had been registered against him on the directive of District Magistrate Ravi Kumar NG. Yadav is accused of treating patients of nearby villages from a temporary clinic operating from a hut on the Station Road in Bangarmau and Palia village.

Police Inspector Arun Pratap Singh said that during interrogation, the quack stated that he earlier worked as a compounder with a doctor and had gained some knowledge about medicines. Later, he started medical practice on his own. As his prescriptions were quite cheap, patients thronged his makeshift clinic, he said. During a medical health camp by the state government on February 3, it was found that as many as 40 persons were HIV-positive due to repeated use of syringes by this quack. The state government has ordered a probe.