Counterfeit currency racket busted: 3 arrested; Rs 6 lakh in fake 500 notes seized in Uttarakhand

ROORKEE: Three people were arrested on Saturday for their alleged involvement in printing counterfeit notes, and according to police, the accused were members of an inter-state fake currency racket.Efforts are now on to apprehend five more members of the gang who remain at large. During the raid, police recovered counterfeit currency worth Rs 6 lakh in Rs 500 denomination notes. The accused were reportedly using computer equipment to produce the fake notes. A printer used in the process was also seized from their possession.The three accused were Baleshwar Singh alias Bali, 40, who was living in Haripur Herbertpur in Dehradun for several years.

However, he originally hailed from Paonta Sahib in Himachal Pradesh. His two accomplices were Manish Kumar, 35, a native of Laksar, and Himanshu, 26, both residing in Roorkee.Baleshwar is said to be the gang leader. To maintain a cover, he posed as a street vendor selling clothes, but for carrying out the illegal operations, the gang rented a room in Lakshmi Vihar locality in Roorkee, where they used computers to produce counterfeit notes.

Police registered a case against the accused at Civil Lines police station under sections 179 (using, selling, or trafficking counterfeit currency notes), 180 (possession of counterfeit notes) and 181 (making or possessing instruments for counterfeit notes) of the BNC.According to police, this was an eight-member inter-state gang involved in manufacturing and circulating fake currency for some time. During interrogation, the arrested individuals disclosed the identities of their five remaining associates, who are currently absconding.Those on the run are: Kapil (from Karnal in Haryana), Deepak Kumar (Krishnanagar in Hisar), Dharamvir Bangad (Ambala), Baldev (Mandi in HP), and Shubham (Rohtak).“This was a successful joint operation by local police and the designated criminal intelligence unit. The remaining five criminals will be arrested soon,” said SSP (Haridwar) Pramendra Singh Dobal.