A 28 billion pound fraud by Claudia Sonea

Well it's nothing new that there are people that try to con other people in exchange of earning easy and quick money, but this time the forgers went overboard. Six defendants from Malaysia, Hong Kong, China and Australia had tried to con the Bank of England and steal 28 billion pounds with badly made fake notes. Everything started in December last year when, Ross Cowie, an Australian lawyer who sent an email to the bank saying he represents six ancient members of a pre-communist Chinese clan. He was interested if the clan's 500000 pound notes could be changed in smaller notes. Furthermore the gang of counterfeiters tried to use a bunch of 1000 pound notes, out of circulation since 1943; except 63 notes everything was gathered back by the bank. London's Southwark Crown Court and the jury made out of eight men and four women found out that the 360 notes of 500000 pounds have never existed. Prosecutor Martin Evans stated that if the notes have been indeed authentic, they would worth three quarters of the 39 billion pounds that are used around the world nowadays. However, the notes were even badly counterfeited, because the Bank of England chief cashier from 1963, Sir Jasper Quintus Hollam always used his first two initials when signing his name, while the forged notes had only the second. Chin Daniel Lim, a 50 years old man from Malaysia, Kim Ming Teo, 41, Ping Shuen Mak and Chi Kuen Chung, 53, from Hong Kong, also Kwok Kwong Chan, 55, from China are the five other counterfeiters. They all live in London area and deny the accusations. The trial will last at least six weeks. Obviously the bank had the smart idea of alluring the Australian lawyer in telling that they want to check the special notes and sent at the meeting an undercover officer. There you have it. Don't try to con a national bank or at least don't be greedy or you might get the attention on you. Good luck to the forgers and keep some really cash for the prison (in)mates.

related story: http://uk.news.yahoo.com/afp/20071022/tuk-britain-court-fraud-australia-malays-a7ad41d_1.html

by Claudia Sonea for PocketNews (http://pocketnews.tv)

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