The unwitting buyer, a doctor in India’s northern state of Uttar Pradesh, was promised it would bring health, wealth and good fortune, RTÉ reports.

According to police, one of the two men disguised himself as a genie and appeared before the doctor as part of the sales pitch.

It was only after he bought the lamp for around seven million rupees (€80,700) that he realised it had no magical powers.

A police spokesperson added: “The men have also cheated other families using the same modus operandi. The total amount of money involved runs into several million rupees.”