FORGED NOTES

Grey River Argus, 13 February 1940, Page 4

FORGED NOTES

Gang in Sydney POLICE MAKE 12 ARRESTS. SYDNEY, January 30. A widespread attempt to pi£s counterfeit £5 notes in Sydney at the week-end failed to yield the resulls expected, because of prompt warnings given to the public by the police. Police reports disclose that until Sunday night more than 300 bogus notes had been passed, of which 110 are now in the possession of the police. Eleven men and one woman were arrested in various parts of the city and suburbs on charges of having attempted to pass counterfeit notes and being in possession of them. Other arrests are expected. Police Pass on Warning. The police believe that the coup was planned by an interstate gmg of counterfeiters. Hotelkeepers, shopkeepers, and bookmakers were among the victims of the fraud. A warning that an attempt might be made to pass counterfeit notes was given to the police on Friday night, and special detectives were instructed to watch for the forgeries. More than 1000 policemen were sent out to warn shopkeepers and hotelkeepers and broadcast warnings were given to the public. So far the detectives have not been able to locate the plant or the persons responsible for the printing of the notes. They believe that a genuine £5 note was photographed, and that several thousand bogus ’notes were printed off the zinc blocks, made from the photograph, on paper resembling that of the genuine notes. Good Imitations.

The counterfeit notes are a g-'id imitation. Each note has been ruffled to give it a worn appearance to hide the many defects, which are easily discernible when the forgeries are compared with a real £5 note. The police warned the public to examine carefully all £5 notes tendered with serial numbers starting with R over 21, 22, 23, and 24. The bogus notes may be detected by defects in the printing. The blue colour on the front is slightly lighter than the colour of a genuine note, while the reverse side is considerably lighter. The water mark in Rhe centre of the note is defective. The portrait of the King’s head on the left side of the front of the bogus notes is mottled, compared with the genuine note. Bookmakers Victimised. At 12.30 p.m. on Saturday a start was made to pass the notes in hotels and at shops, and by the evening the telephone at the Detective Office was ringing almost continuously with complaints from persons who had been victims of the fraud?

After one of the bogus notes had been offered at a hotel at Summer ' Hill police in cars rushed there, and two men were arrested. Several of the forged notes were handed to bookmakers at Randwick, and attempts were made to pass them at the greyhound racing meeting at -Harold Park on Saturdaynight. Detectives believe that there are still thousands of the notes ready for circulation throughout Australia.