Police warn public of fake bills

CEBU, Philippines - As elections draw near, the police are warning the public, especially the foreigners, to beware of fake peso bills.

Sr. Insp. Rolando Pinili, chief of Theft and Robbery Section of the Cebu City Police Office, said they recently recovered at least five fake P1,000 bills from an international language school.

Pinili said the school security guard turned over the fake bills to their office, saying that the money was taken from the students, particularly Japanese and Koreans, upon giving their payments.

He said the modus operandi of the people behind the distribution of these fake bills include pretending to exchange coins with the foreigners.

“Mosakay na sila og taxi unya magpasumangil ug pasensiyo sa tindahan na naa’y makit-an na mga foreigner. Unya wala ma’y sinsiyo ang tindahan, adto moduol sa mga foreigner, pasumangil og pasinsilyo (They take cabs and pretend to exchange their bills with a store where there are foreigners. Since the stores do not have change, they approach the foreigners and ask them instead)”, Pinili said.

The victims fall prey to the deception, Pinili said.

The TRS chief said that fake bills mostly proliferate during the election period, when politicians reportedly hand over money to voters.

Chief Insp. Romeo Santander, head of the City Intelligence Branch, added that they are now also closely monitoring the selling of fake bills as it has been a trend that these are sold as election draws near.

Santander said they received information that the manufacturer of fake bills came from A. Lopez St., Cebu City.

“But wala na diha ang target manufacturer. Nag-move na from one place to another (But the target manufacturer does not live there anymore and has moved from one place to another),” he said.

Santander said the information that they have gathered jived with their corresponding unit at the Cebu Provincial Police Office, the Provincial Intelligence Branch.

PIB, Santander said, has arrested suspects selling fake bills, the source of which also came from the manufacturer at A. Lopez St. – (FREEMAN)