A gang of thieves in India who had been operating a fake police station 500 meters from the home of the city’s police chief for eight months has been arrested and arrested on suspicion of extortion, a police official said on Thursday.

At least six members of the gang, including two women, were arrested when a real policeman on Wednesday spotted two uniformed men whose homemade weapons aroused his suspicions.

“The investigation is ongoing into this matter. More information will be revealed,” said DC Police Officer Srivastava.

According to DC Srivastava, the leader of the gang is on the run but every effort is being made to find and arrest him.

Extortion when filing complaints or asking for help

The fake police station had been in operation for eight months. He was based in a guest house, located about 500 meters from the residence of the municipal police chief in the city of Banka, in Bihar state.

The impostors employed men and women from this rural area, for about five hundred rupees (6.20 euros) a day, making up the staff of the police station while they, the “officers”, wore uniforms with rank insignia.

Many neighbors, convinced that it is a real police station, have probably been victims of extortion when they went to report or ask for help.

Incidents of fraudsters or gangs posing as government agents, including police and military, are common in India. The general fear of law enforcement authorities is such that he rarely ventures to question his identity.

Instead, creating a police station from scratch is something much more exceptional.