The Hindu : New Delhi News : Three held with fake currency

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Sunday, Jul 20, 2008
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New Delhi

Three held with fake currency

Devesh K. Pandey

NEW DELHI: Three persons have been booked by the Customs at Indira Gandhi International Airport here for allegedly smuggling in Rs.2 lakh in counterfeit currency on board a flight from Bangkok.

The Customs officials were conducting a surprise check of the belongings of the passengers of a flight from Bangkok when they noticed that three of the travellers — later identified as Vimal Kalra, Baljeet Singh and Meena — were trying to conceal some envelopes in their handbags. Suspecting that something was amiss, the officials took them to an interrogation room.

The officials found the envelopes containing notes of Rs.500 denomination hidden in the handbags of the accused, sources said. On a closer examination, all the notes were found to be fake. The three were arrested late on Friday evening. During interrogation, the accused purportedly disclosed that Vimal had procured the fake notes from a Pakistan national in Thailand and roped in Meena and Baljeet Singh to work for him as couriers.

The accused, who are suspected to be regular visitors to Thailand, claimed that this was the first time they had smuggled in the fake currency. However, the Customs are trying to verify the disclosures made by them. The antecedents of Vimal Kalra are also being checked.

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