In a bizarre incident, a Gujarat village almost pulled off an elaborate con by creating a fake IPL and duping Russian punters who bet money on these T20 matches. The scam was busted by the cops just before the 'knockout quarterfinal' and the gang was arrested, according to a report by TOI.
As the news hit social media, it became viral and netizens, including cricket commentator Harsha Bhogle, who was beyond impressed.
The incident took place in a remote farm at Molipur village of Mehsana district where 21 farm labourers and unemployed youth carried off this scam by wearing team jerseys and posing as IPL players and umpires. The matches were broadcasted over YouTube and the bets were placed by the punters on their 'official' Telegram channel.
To make it look more authentic, the field was lit by halogen lights, the umpires flaunted their walkie-talkies, crowd-noise sound effects was added and even a person was hired to mimic the famous commentator, Harsha Bhogle.
As per the reports, the scam was organised by Shoeb Davda who worked in a Russian pub for eight months before returning to Molipur. There Shoeb met Asif Mohammed, who planned the entire con.
Police official Bhavesh Rathod told the Times of India, “Shoeb would take live bets over the Telegram channel. He would instruct Kolu, the umpire, over a walkie-talkie to signal fours and sixes. Kolu communicated the same to the batsman and the bowler. Acting on the instructions, the bowler would deliver a slow ball, enabling the batsman to hit it for a four or a six,”.
The cops have so far arrested 4 people involved. Rs 3 lakh installment was already paid by the Russian betters before the cops made the arrest.
This is what people had to say:
(With inputs from TOI).
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