Mandeni businesses cheated with fake bank notes

Businesses in Mandeni have lost thousands of Rands since Friday, December 4 after being paid in batches of fake R100 notes by “customers” buying in bulk.

The first reported incident happened at Roots Butchery where the crook ran away when he was found out and was later arrested. Six more cases have since been reported, but no further arrests had been made.

In one case, the shop’s dropsafe rejected the fraudulent R100 notes but the cashiers did not realise that the notes were fake and the money was banked manually on Monday.

By Monday afternoon, reports of fake R200 notes had also started coming in.

Steve Fox from Business Against Crime in Mandeni said it was very difficult to pin this kind of fraud on anyone because the person could simply claim he went to the shebeen (or any other business) and was handed the money there in change.

He said the perpetrators were crafty and typically mixed three of four fake notes with five or six real notes.

“The fake notes are a very good reproduction, looking and feeling like real money, and people have to look carefully to see the difference,” said Fox.

He said this batch of fake notes all had the same serial number (MP0869616D) and the hologram on the bottom right corner did not function (no reflection and movement).

“Ultra violet light would show fake notes and people are going to have to go the same route as the casinos and check every note under an ultra violet light,” he said.

He said businesses had been caught off guard because this kind of crime has not been seen in Mandeni for many years.

“I expect these criminals to move their focus to a different area since an arrest has been made and people are becoming aware of the scam. I have alerted Ballito businesses to be on the lookout,” said Fox.

The South African Reserve Bank lists the following well-established security features to look out for:

* A watermark formed within the paper. When held up to the light, the image is visible and will not produce on colour copiers.

* A security thread running through the banknote paper. A special thread is woven into the paper. On the front it appears as a silvery stripe. When held up to direct light, it appears as a continuous line on which the letters “SARB” can be seen.

* High quality paper. Members of the public report that they recognise a banknote as a counterfeit by the texture of the paper.

* Print quality. The fineness of the print quality on a genuine banknote is difficult for current scanning equipment to resolve properly. Intaglio printing, where thick ink lends a raised surface to the print surface, is difficult to reproduce cheaply.

* The latest design features and technologies are constantly monitored and applied where applicable. Hold a genuine banknote up to direct light and you will see its safety features.

Do you want to receive news alerts via WhatsApp? Send us a WhatsApp message with your name and surname to 061 718 4438.

Please read our WhatsApp broadcast list disclaimer.
Join us on BBM at 59015786
Join the conversation on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.