Bengaluru Police busts gang circulating fake Indian currency notes; three held

The accused have also circulated fake notes of face value ₹three to four lakhs to their contacts based in Kerala, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh.

The city police has busted an inter-state counterfeiting network with the arrest of three men and seized 1,307 fake Indian currency notes of ₹500 denomination with a face value of ₹6.53 lakh from them, officials said on Monday.

The arrests were made after secret information was received at Cottonpet police station about the circulation of fake Indian currency notes by two men in their jurisdiction. (HT File)

The arrests were made after secret information was received at Cottonpet police station about the circulation of fake Indian currency notes by two men in their jurisdiction, following which a case was registered and an investigation initiated, they said. According to the police, among the arrested accused, two hail from Kerala and they were caught from near the city railway station here in Bengaluru when they were allegedly found supplying fake Indian currency notes in small quantities in the busy locality of 'Majestic'.

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Based on their disclosure, the third accomplice who hails from Tamil Nadu was nabbed from Hosur. During interrogation, the third accomplice nabbed from Hosur told police that he sourced fake Indian currency notes from a man based in Bihar's Patna, a senior police officer said.

Investigation has revealed that the accused handled dealings related to sourcing and circulation of fake Indian currency notes through an Instagram account and these counterfeit notes were circulated mainly in the busy areas of Bengaluru like Majestic, City Railway Station and other markets, he said. The accused from Tamil Nadu visited Patna often and get fake currency notes from his contact there. So far, they have received fake Indian currency notes of up to ₹10 lakh face value from him, he added.

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Earlier, the accused have also circulated fake notes of face value ₹three to four lakhs to their contacts based in Kerala, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh, the officer said. With the arrest, a total of 1,307 fake Indian currency notes of ₹500 denomination and a face value of ₹6,53,500 in total have been seized from them, the senior police officer said.

Police said further investigation is underway to trace the main culprit based in Bihar who has been allegedly supplying fake India currency notes through the accused persons into southern India.