City of Newark falls for Sister City scam: "Whose job was it to do a simple Google search?" - CBS New York

NEWARK, N.J. -- The city of Newark is admitting it got scammed.

It was about to become a Sister City with a Hindu nation, but there was one problem -- the nation doesn't exist.

As CBS2's Ali Bauman reports, the city only found out about the fraud after it held an official ceremony for it.

What started off as a seemingly well-intentioned partnership has turned into a giant embarrassment for the city of Newark.

Earlier this year, Mayor Ras Baraka invited what he thought was the Hindu nation of Kailasa to Newark's City Hall for a cultural trade agreement, but it turns out Kailasa is no nation at all; it's a fake.

"Very embarrassing for the city," Newark resident Jacob Rosario said.

via www.cbsnews.com

Oh my.