Fake SBI branch busted in Chhattisgarh

In an incident reminiscent of the fake SBI branch in the Cuddalore district of Tamil Nadu in 2020, local authorities have exposed a bogus branch of the same bank operating in a rented shop at a commercial complex in Chhapora village of Chhattisgarh’s Sakti district. The deceitful bank had been functioning since September 18, with five employees working over there.

According to Additional Superintendent of Police Rama Patel, the branch was set up in a rented shop with posters and banners of SBI. Suspecting something amiss, local residents lodged complaints about the branch. A team from SBI’s regional office in Korba conducted an inspection and confirmed that the branch was fake, said reports, quoting Patel.

Police raided the location, and seized computers and other materials. Five employees were found working at the branch, claiming they had been hired through interviews. They are currently being grilled, Patel added.

A case, under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), has been filed against the three operators, including the alleged mastermind who posed as the branch manager. Authorities are now looking into the full extent of the fraud and how the operation was able to function unnoticed. They are also probing how much money was collected.

In a similar expose during the lockdown in 2020, the Tamil Nadu Police arrested three people for running a fake SBI branch in Panruti, Cuddalore district. Kamal Babu, the son of a former SBI employee, had set up a fraudulent branch with computers, lockers, and forged documents.