Fake SBI branch busted in Chhattisgarh, 3 operators booked

A fake branch of the State Bank of India (SBI) was uncovered in Chhattisgarh’s Sakti district, police said on Sunday.

The fake branch had been functioning in Chhapora village under Malkharauda police station limits since September 18.

It was set up in a rented shop with posters and banners of SBI, according to Additional Superintendent of Police Rama Patel.

Local residents, suspecting something was amiss, lodged complaints about the branch. A team from SBI’s regional office in Korba conducted an inspection and confirmed that the branch was fake, Patel said.

Police raided the location on Friday, seizing computers and other materials. Five employees were found working at the branch, claiming they had been recruited through interviews. They are currently being interrogated, Patel added.

A case has been registered against the three operators under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), including the alleged mastermind who posed as the branch manager.

Authorities are investigating how many people were defrauded by the scheme and how much money was collected.

This incident recalls a similar case in 2020 when Tamil Nadu Police arrested three individuals 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. The branch operated during the lockdown but was exposed after an SBI customer enquired about it with the manager of an existing branch in the town.