An Indian man who had wrongfully been pronounced dead by the government turned to crime as a desperate way of proving that he was very much alive.

Baburam Bhil a 40-year-old man from Rajasthan’s Mithora village, had long been trying to convince authorities that he was still alive after they issued a death certificate in his name. He tried to correct the error, appealing to his village elders and state authorities, but to no avail, so he decided to go for a more extreme option. Afraid that all his properties would be confiscated by the government after his “death”, Baburam came to the conclusion that becoming a serious criminal was the best way of attracting attention to his problem. On July 19, he grabbed a knife and a petrol bottle and began terrorizing a local school.

After entering the Chuli Bera Dharana School, the desperate man proceeded to seriously injure two teachers, acting Headmaster Hardayal and teacher Suresh Kumar, as well as a parent. According to a police report, Baburam Bhil also took several students and teachers hostage until law enforcement arrived and arrested him.

During the issuing interrogation, the Rajasthan man explained that he had wrongfully been pronounced dead, and after repeatedly trying to have his death certificate annulled, he became desperate to prove he was alive. He figured that committing serious enough crimes to get himself arrested would leave police with no other choice than to arrest him and write his name down in the police records, proof that he wasn’t actually dead.

Baburam Bhil has been placed under arrest for his crimes, but his plan might just work, as police have announced an investigation into his claims.

Interestingly, the 40-year-old man’s case is not that uncommon in India. Vio News reported that in November of last year, a 70-year-old man was seen walking through Agra with a placard that read ‘I’m alive’ after his death certificate was wrongfully issued.