Currency racket busted; seven held with Rs 7.57 lakh in counterfeit bills

Gang operated from rented house at Elanji, told owner they were into TV serial production; printers and other equipment seized; probe extended to outside state 
in front of the rented house at Elanji near Piravom on Tuesday | ARUN ANGELA
in front of the rented house at Elanji near Piravom on Tuesday | ARUN ANGELA

KOCHI: A joint operation carried out by the police and anti-terrorist squad (ATS) on Tuesday busted a counterfeit currency manufacturing racket operating from a rented house at Elanji near Piravom and seized fake bills of Rs 500 amounting to the face value of Rs 7.57 lakh.

Seven persons were arrested, police said. The arrested are Madhusoodhanan, 48, of Pathanamthitta; Stephen, 33, Anand, 24, and Thankamuthu, 60, all from Vandiperiyar in Idukki; Faisal, 34, of Kottayam; Jibi, 36, of Peechi, Thrissur; and Sunilkumar, 40, of Nedumkandam in Idukki.

Acting on a tip-off, the police team raided the rented house at Painkutty in the early hours and seized fake notes, five printers, a machine each for photocopying, screen printing and currency counting, ink and papers used by the gang to print the fake notes. Madhusoodhanan took the house on rent convincing the owner, Sunny, a resident of Painkutty, that they were involved in television serial production for a Malayalam TV channel. The gang has been staying at the house for the past nine months. As the house is situated in a remote area, locals didn’t have a clue about the gang’s activities or their whereabouts. The police said the fake currency bills seem to have been circulated outside the district and the state. 

The house owner, Sunny, is residing near the spot but he didn’t know that the gang was involved in counterfeit currency racket, but an inquiry is on, the official added. The gang paid the rent via bank transfer.

During the raid, five of the accused were present at the house while Madhusoodhanan was arrested from Angamaly later, a source said. Thankamuthu was nabbed from an undisclosed location. “The investigation has been extended outside the district as it is suspected that more persons are involved in this racket,” said Ernakulam Rural SP K Karthik. The customs department and Enforcement Directorate are also coordinating with the local police in the probe as the agencies suspect the involvement of more persons in the racket.

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