DB busts counterfeit dollar, rupee gang
They used to make counterfeited foreign currency and circulate them in the market to take advantage of the current dollar crisis, the DB chief says
The Detective Branch (DB) of Dhaka Metropolitan Police arrested four persons of a gang involved in making and selling counterfeit currency on Wednesday.
The arrestees are gang leader Ujjal Das alias Sobhan Shikder, Abdur Rashid, Mominul Islam and Shah Md Tuhin Ahmed alias Jamal.
At that time, fake rupees and dollar notes worth Tk27 lakh, fake revenue stamps worth Tk1.2 crore and various materials for making counterfeit notes were recovered from them.
In a press briefing on Saturday, DB chief Mohammad Harun-or-Rashid said this gang had been making counterfeit foreign notes like Indian rupees, US dollars and revenue stamps. They had been running the racket for 8-9 years.
Bangla Tribune“The members of the gang used to rent houses for short term in different areas of Dhaka. They used to make fake foreign notes and circulate them in the market, taking chances of the current dollar crisis,” he said.
“They also used to smuggle them abroad. Many people were being cheated by buying foreign currency from them at low prices,” added Harun-or-Rashid.
The DB chief said the gang leader Ujjal Das was arrested from Darus Salam police station area in a raid.
Later, based on the information given by him, the remaining three were arrested while preparing revenue stamps from a house in Darus Salam.
He said the gang used to collect paper from Motijheel area and paint and foil from Naya Bazar and Mitford.
Harun-or-Rashid also said the gang has agents all over the country.
“In the first phase, counterfeited rupee-dollar notes worth Tk1 crore were sold for Tk10 lakh, then fake rupee-dollar notes worth Tk20 lakh were sold for Tk50 lakh,” said the DB chief.
“Agents would prepare fake notes of any amount as required. They also used to make counterfeited Tk100 and Tk200 notes,” he added.
The DB chief said with the amount of fake money-making paper and other materials found with them, the gang could have released counterfeited notes and revenue stamps worth about Tk200 crore in the next Ramadan and Eid-ul-Fitr season.
In response to a question, Harun-or-Rashid said many people were being cheated by buying dollars from them at a low cost.
“If we had not arrested this gang that day, fake notes and stamps would have gone to the market the very next day. We have got the names of some of their agents. We are trying to catch them as well,” the DB chief added.