Casual worker arrested with counterfeit notes
TANGERANG (JP): A 40-year-old construction worker was apprehended on Tuesday for allegedly using counterfeit money to buy a second-hand radio from a Pabuaran villager here.
The Tangerang Police detective chief for economic crimes, Second Lt. Suhartono, told reporters on Wednesday that Suarman was arrested based on the report of Sukma Jaya, 28, who told the police that his brother, Asjaya, 55, had received three Rp 20,000 notes from the man as payment for a second-hand radio.
Police immediately went to Pabuaran in the Curug Kulon subdistrict to question Suarna.
"He was then handcuffed for buying things with counterfeit money," Suhartono said.
The officer said Asjaya became suspicious after noticing that the color of the paper notes, which were still fresh, looked dull. He then told his younger brother about his discovery.
Following the arrest, Tangerang Police brought the suspect to his home at Cigeulis village in Pandeglang, where the officers confiscated a small printing machine and 122 pieces of blank paper the size of rupiah notes.
Suhartono said the machine was believed to have been used by the suspect to produce the counterfeit notes.
Police also confiscated from the house Brazilian money in the form of 98 notes in denominations of 5,000 cruzados.
Suarman, a construction worker from Pandeglang, West Java, is now detained at Curug police station pending further investigation.
Spread
The country has witnessed several cases of money counterfeiting over the past two years. Many of the arrested suspects are believed to have worked for syndicates specializing in the illegal business.
There have been no details about the exact amount of the counterfeit money that has been circulated, but based on the testimony of suspects, it could already have reached billions of rupiah.
In January this year, South Jakarta Police arrested a 38-year- old housewife in connection with the use of counterfeit money.
From her house, the officers seized Rp 400 million of fake money in the form of 8,000 Rp 50,000 notes and a bag of Rp 500 notes.
The female suspect admitted to have spent some Rp 6.6 billion in counterfeit money at shopping centers and traditional markets as well as on taxi fares in the capital over the last few years.
Authorities have for years refused to explain such cases in detail, saying that crimes related to counterfeit money and its distribution should not be revealed to the public for fear of causing anxiety.
According to Article No. 244 and No. 551 of the Criminal Code, those found guilty of counterfeiting will receive a maximum punishment of 15 years in prison.
Early this year, the Tangerang District Court sentenced two members of a syndicate that produced counterfeit money amounting to over Rp 5 billion.
The first, Jie Jushandi, alias Anon, 55, was sentenced to three years in jail after being found guilty of bankrolling the counterfeiting, while Suranjana, 25, was sentenced to two years for his involvement as a machine operator.
The two immediately shook hands with the judge upon hearing their sentences, which were lighter than the six years and four years respectively pressed for by the prosecutors. (41/bsr)