THE NUMBER of fake 50 euro notes circulating in Limerick was up this week, with seven incidents reported to Gardai.
The duds were given in exchange for goods in various outlets across Limerick, mainly grocery stores, petrol stations, a pharmacy and a juice bar.
In some of the instances the fraudsters managed to con staff, but in other cases, the forgeries were spotted and the notes were not accepted. On a couple of occasions staff held on to the fakes until gardai arrived.
One of the culprits involved in trying to use these dud notes is described as a young red haired male of approximately 19 years and reported to have been wearing a navy tracksuit and runners at the time at the time of the attempted fraud.
Gardai remind people to make sure and carry out essential security checks on euro notes. Obvious security features should be identified before accepting notes, these include; checking for the watermark, security thread, hologram patch and raised print. The value numeral on the 50 euro note will also change colour from purple to olive green or brown when tilted if the note is a genuine.
By taking a few seconds to feel, examine and tilt euro notes, fraudsters can be prevented from passing off their fakes as the real thing.
