FAKE CRICKET LEAGUE SCAMS RUSSIANS

An Indian gang set up a fake Cricket League tournament to dupe Russian gamblers in a betting scam. The gang leased a remote farm in Gujarat, India, and installed a cricket pitch, complete with boundary lines and halogen lamps. They set up high-resolution cameras and used computer generated graphics to display scores on a live streaming screen. They hired unemployed young men to play, paying them 400 rupees (about $5) a game. Players would switch jerseys to represent three different teams playing in what appeared to be the quarterfinals of a cricket tournament, broadcast live on a YouTube channel called “Indian Premier Cricket League.” Cameramen were instructed to only show close-ups and tight shots of the field. Crowd-noise sound effects were added in the background and a fake play-by-play announcer provided commentary. Russian gamblers were lured into betting, and the gang would then alert the fake umpire on the pitch of the bet, who would signal the bowler and batsman to hit a six, four or get out, so that the bettor would lose. The scheme was similar to the movie “The Sting,” in which a group of con artists set up a fake horse race operation in order to defraud a gangster.
* Isn’t this how the Arena Football League works?
* Well, heck, why not set up some bleachers and sell tickets and make some REAL money?
* Wouldn’t it be a lot less effort just to stick the gamblers up with a gun?
* The Russians got suspicious when, at the end of each game, all the players would break out in a big Bollywood dance number.
* Great – something else for Putin to get cranky about.
* Now Elon Musk wants to buy the Indian Premier Cricket League for $7 billion.