Security officials at Chao Anouvong Park in Chanthabouly district, Vientiane apprehended two teenagers for possessing and using counterfeit money.
The two known as Mr. Khamman and Mr. Sida admitted to officials that they used counterfeit notes to buy goods on four different occasions at the night market.
After security officials had investigated their movements, they immediately set about searching for the suspects.
At around 9pm on August 15, they arrested two men and confiscated the counterfeit banknotes worth more than 1.8 million kip.
The fake notes included a 10,000 kip note, twenty- five 50,000 kip notes, and six 100,000 kip notes.
The officials handed over the men to Chanthabouly district police for an on-going investment and to search for more offenders. Police were then able to arrest another man who was involved in the case.
The police are now concluding their investigations and the men will be punished in accordance with the law.
The use of the counterfeit 10,000 kip, 20,000 kip, 50,000 kip and 100,000 kip notes appears to be on the increase as forgers believe these notes are more likely to change hands undetected.
At the start of last month the Bank of Lao PDR issued an announcement concerning fake 50,000 kip banknotes, urging everyone to be vigilant when making monetary transactions.
The announcement came after economic police discovered a group of people using fake notes to buy goods in markets.
The gang used sophisticated machinery to print notes that look very similar to genuine banknotes, employing different methods to those used previously when forgers simply photocopied banknotes on A4 paper, according to Director General of BOL’s Currency Issues Department.
BOL is now stepping up efforts to crack down on the circulation of counterfeit foreign banknotes by working with the Economic Police Office and the Cinema Department of the Ministry of Information, Culture and Tourism.
The department plans to distribute more information about the use of genuine banknotes and how people can tell the difference between genuine and fake notes.
The bank called for public cooperation in the matter and asked people to notify the police if they were handed a forged banknote.
Bank called on traders and customers to make greater use of the kip and to make large transactions through banks or by cheque to avoid falling victim to the forgers.
Source: Vientiane Times
