A record number of counterfeit euro notes, amounting to a ‘value’ of €380,000, was seized by the Polícia Judiciária in the north of Portugal.
An Eastern European citizen was arrested last week in possession of 1,901 fake €200 notes during an international anti-counterfeiting police investigation which started a month ago.
According to the PJ, the fake notes were of “exceptional quality” and represented the largest haul of counterfeit euro notes of “this level of perfection” in the world.
The detainee is currently being held in police custody and is believed to be responsible for distributing counterfeit notes worldwide since 2002. His moves have been traced to Spain, Italy, Germany, Bulgaria and, now, Portugal.
This is the second such police operation in the north of Portugal this month. As the Algarve Resident reported last week, the PJ, working closely with Europol, dismantled an organised crime group’s illegal counterfeit euro print shop and arrested five.
The Portuguese authorities seized €30,000 in €20 and €50 denomination notes, as well as various printing equipment and tools used for the production of the counterfeits.
