A gang of crooks in India who had been running a fake police station 500 meters from the city police chief’s home for eight months have been busted and arrested on suspicion of extortion, a police officer said on Thursday.
At least six members of the gang, including two women, were arrested when a real cop spotted two uniformed men on Wednesday whose homemade guns aroused his suspicions.
“The investigation is ongoing in this case. More information will be revealed,” DC police officer Srivastava told AFP.
According to DC Srivastava, the leader of the gang is on the run, but everything is done to find and arrest him.
The bogus police station had been operating for eight months. He was based in a guest house, located about 500 meters from the residence of the Chief of Municipal Police in the town of Banka, in the state of Bihar.
The imposters employed men and women from this rural area, for about five hundred rupees (6.20 euros) a day, constituting the staff of the police station while they, the “officers”, wore uniforms with insignia of graded.
Many residents, convinced that they are dealing with a real police station, have probably been victims of extortion when they came to file a complaint or seek help.
Incidents where scammers or gangs impersonate government agents, including police and military officers, are common in India.
The general fear of the authorities responsible for enforcing the law is such that one seldom ventures to question their identity.
On the other hand, for a police station to be created from scratch is something much more exceptional.