Scammers in India set up a fake branch of the State Bank of India (SBI) in the village of Chhapora, operating it for 10 days to trick people into paying for jobs. Six people, including Pintu Dhurve, were hired as employees after paying large sums, with Pintu borrowing 580,000 rupees ($6,900) to secure his position. Despite red flags like no real work to be done and missing employee ID cards, the convincing setup, including new furnishings and SBI logos, fooled them into believing the branch was legitimate.
For 10 days, the employees showed up to a nearly empty workplace, with the "branch manager" instructing them to read about SBI protocols online. Suspicion arose when the manager disappeared, and soon after, police, along with actual SBI employees, arrived to expose the branch as a scam. Police spokesperson Rajesh Patel confirmed that no bank customers were cheated, but the six employees lost a combined 1.2 million rupees ($14,300) after being duped into paying for fake jobs.
Source: Oddity Central