"Suspected Counterfeit Bills" Reported by Hospital
"Under Investigation... Not Sophisticated"
Counterfeit 50,000-won bills were repeatedly found at a hospital in Daegu, prompting the police to launch an investigation.
According to the Daegu Seongseo Police Station on the 5th, on the 31st of last month, Hospital A located in Dalseo-gu reported to the police that "a 50,000-won bill could not be deposited into the ATM and is suspected to be counterfeit." The hospital had also informed the police the previous day that another 50,000-won bill appeared to be counterfeit. A police official stated, "All the bills have been confirmed as counterfeit and are under investigation," adding, "They are not of a sophisticated level."
Earlier, in December last year, a man in his 50s was caught by a bank teller while attempting to exchange counterfeit bills. At that time, the Pyeongtaek Police Station in Gyeonggi Province sent Mr. A to prosecution without detention on charges of using counterfeit foreign currency. Mr. A was accused of attempting to exchange 65 counterfeit 100-dollar bills (worth about 10 million won) at a bank in Seojeong-dong, Pyeongtaek City, around 5 p.m. on October 25 last year.
Meanwhile, according to the "2024 Mid-Year Counterfeit Currency Detection Status" announced by the Bank of Korea last month, a total of 143 counterfeit bills were discovered last year, a 27.4% decrease compared to the previous year (197 bills). In terms of amount, it was 1.93 million won, down 7.1% from the previous year (2.078 million won). By denomination, 5,000-won bills numbered 75, 10,000-won bills 40, 50,000-won bills 23, and 1,000-won bills 5.
By discoverer, counterfeit bills were found as follows: 7 by the Bank of Korea, 132 by financial institutions, and 4 by individuals, mostly detected during the currency handling process at financial institutions. By region, counterfeit bills found in the Seoul metropolitan area, including Seoul, Gyeonggi, and Incheon, accounted for the majority with 81 bills. A Bank of Korea official explained, "The decrease in cash usage for face-to-face transactions due to the increased use of non-cash payment methods, as well as the improved ability of the public to identify counterfeit bills, appear to be the reasons."
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