Officers in Peru’s capital Lima seized over $8 million in counterfeit currency destined for the United States and Europe, the police’s fraud division said Friday.
The operation “dismantled a criminal organization dedicated to the falsification of foreign currency,” police said in a statement, adding they recovered nearly eight million counterfeit dollars and 11 million fake euros along with equipment.
Police believe the money was intended to flood “the international market, specifically the United States, Europe and the countries of the Andean Community” customs union — Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru.
Agents also detained five people, among them the suspected leader of the organization, and recovered supplies including stamps, a false bill detector and pots of paint.
Since 2013, Peru has been considered the world’s biggest producer of counterfeit dollars, overtaking Colombia, according to local officials.
As part of the fight against such fraud, the US in 2012 installed a secret service division in Peru to work alongside local authorities.
The Nation
