Four arrested over fake money

JAKARTA (JP): North Jakarta Police detectives arrested four men for allegedly trying to sell undercover detectives packages they claimed contained Rp 800 million (US$106,700) in counterfeit Rp 50,000 bills, on Jl. RE Martadinata on Tuesday night.

"Sellers of counterfeit money sell their merchandise and get paid in real money. We thought we would get Rp 800 million in counterfeit money and bust these guys. Instead, they tried to sell us blank paper," North Jakarta Police chief of operational control Maj. Bayu said on Wednesday.

He identified the four as Eddy Sutrisno, Sidik, Sukirno and Ednar, who claimed to have fooled people at least three times into buying "blank paper for hundreds of millions of authentic rupiah".

"They told people they had counterfeit money. People just bought it without checking, at least three times. They have bought several cars with the real money they got," Bayu said.

"The suspects earlier conducted their operations in the Pancoran area of South Jakarta and Central Java."

Bayu said North Jakarta Police received information about the suspects from residents on Tuesday.

Police immediately contacted Eddy, and arranged to buy fake money totaling Rp 800 million for a negotiated price of Rp 300 million in authentic money.

"We promised to meet at the Pasir Putih bus stop on Jl. RE Martadinata, at about 9 p.m. on Tuesday," Bayu said.

"We did not have the Rp 300 million, so we just caught Eddy and his friends, and confiscated the five packets, each about 40 centimeters long, from them."

"In each packet, there was only one real Rp 50,000 bill on top, one Rp 50,000 bill below, and all blank paper in between." (ylt)