Fake Rs2,000 notes seized: DRI to check if man arrested in Mumbai had criminal past

The accused caught in Mumbra hails from Karnataka, Based on his interrogation, the agency raided a few places in Bengaluru from where they arrested his brother-in-law and another accomplice

The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) is verifying the antecedents of a man arrested from Mumbai with fake ₹2,000 currency notes amounting to Rs7.86 lakh.

The seized fake currency.(HT)

Sources stated the accused caught in Mumbra has been involved in smuggling fake currency since 2016.

The agency will also scan the property details and the Mumbai links in the case.

Investigations are on to ascertain where and how the accused circulated the notes.

The accused caught in Mumbra hails from Karnataka, Based on his interrogation, the agency raided a few places in Bengaluru from where they arrested his brother-in-law and another accomplice. “We are investigating the magnitude of the syndicate and its further links to create counterfeit currency,” said a source.

The 36-year-old accused was intercepted at Mumbra where 349 counterfeit notes — also called fake Indian currency notes (FICN) — amounting to ₹6.98 lakh were found in his bag. After he was interrogated, the DRI also conducted searches at Bangalore, where fake notes amounting to ₹58,000 were recovered.

Preliminary investigations revealed the man got the fake notes from an associate in Islampur, West Bengal. Islampur, located in West Dinajpur district, is close to the Bangladesh border. It is suspected the notes were printed and smuggled from Bangladesh. The agency is also investigating if there are any links with Pakistan.