Spanish police uncover counterfeit cash in isolated cottage

THE National Police have dismantled a Toledo-based criminal organisation dedicated to the counterfeiting of €50 notes, reports from February 17 confirm. 

The sting is one of most important in Spain´s counterfeiting history, and saw officers seize materials for printing more than €2million worth of high-quality notes and sophisticated machinery used to produce them. 

Investigations began when police became aware of a new counterfeit €50 note in circulation that shared the features of others produced by a since-dismantled ring in Talavera de la Reina, Toledo province in 2015. 

Swooping on an isolated chalet at an unconfirmed location in Toledo province, officers found machinery for money printing including scanners, industrial presses and a heating device for drying freshly-printed notes in large volumes. Large amounts of paper and inks were also found on the premises, as well as equipment to produce an imitation hologram for the notes. 

Two people at the location have been detained. 

The operation was a combined effort between the investigation Brigade of the Bank of Spain, police in Talavera and EUROPOL.