DB busts currency forgery racket, arrests six in Dhaka

Detective Branch of Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) arrested six members of a currency forgery racket from the capital's Kotwali and Adabar areas on Friday night.  

During the raid, the law enforcers also seized fake banknotes worth Tk5, 857,000, counterfeit 11,300 US dollars and tools to manufacture fake notes

The arrestees are Kazi Masud Parvez, Md Mamun, Mosammad Shimu, Ruhul Amin, Shohel Rana, and Nazmul Haque.

During the briefing on Saturday, Dhaka Metropolitan Police's Additional Commissioner for Detective Branch, AKM Hafiz Akter, said that the arrestees have been manufacturing fake currencies for the last five to six years.

"This ring is experienced in forging US dollars," Hafiz says, adding that no one can guess that the currencies are fake.

DB Tejgaon division's Additional Deputy Commissioner, Shafiqul Islam, said multiple cases of currency forgery had been filed earlier against Masud, the ringleader of the racket. 

Several note forgery rings have been active in the capital and elsewhere during Durga Puja, said Hafiz.

All the fake currencies were in 1000-taka and 100-dollar denominations. The gang sold a bundle of one lakh 1,000-taka fake notes at Tk10,000-12,000 to retail and wholesale traders in different districts, while they sold one lakh $100 fake notes at Tk25,000-30,000, said DB investigators.

Last week, the DB police arrested four individuals and seized fake currencies worth over Tk49 lakh after busting a fake note-manufacturing factory on Nurjahan Road at Mohammadpur in the capital.

On August 24, the same DB team had arrested five individuals and seized Tk61.5 lakh in fake notes.