PHUKET: Police are looking for an expat couple who have passed fake 20-pound notes at a Kata currency exchange.
The scammers struck over two days and have ripped off the exchange dealer for a total of 12,389 baht.
In the heart of Phuket's Kata beach shopping district, opposite the five-star Boathouse resort and its Re Ka Ta beachside restaurant, exchange dealer Kanyarat Tiwsakun, 49, lamented her loss today.
The deception was only discovered when she checked the British bills before taking them to a bank and discovered that most of them were fake.
Police from Chalong, who oversee the Kata and Karon area, are hoping that the couple can be traced from local security camera footage.
Khun Kanyarat told officers that somebody else was manning the currency booth on Tuesday when the couple first dropped by and exchanged 160 pounds in eight 20-pound notes.
On Wednesday, staff served the same couple and exchanged four crisp 20-pound bills valued at 80 pounds.
Khun Kanyarat checked the notes today and found the counterfeits. Later a local bank confirmed that only two of the 12 notes were genuine - the rest were good-quality fakes.
Now Khun Kanyarat is out of pocket and police will be placing their faith in security camera footage or bystanders who may have got a good look at the two couples.
The scammers struck over two days and have ripped off the exchange dealer for a total of 12,389 baht.
In the heart of Phuket's Kata beach shopping district, opposite the five-star Boathouse resort and its Re Ka Ta beachside restaurant, exchange dealer Kanyarat Tiwsakun, 49, lamented her loss today.
The deception was only discovered when she checked the British bills before taking them to a bank and discovered that most of them were fake.
Police from Chalong, who oversee the Kata and Karon area, are hoping that the couple can be traced from local security camera footage.
Khun Kanyarat told officers that somebody else was manning the currency booth on Tuesday when the couple first dropped by and exchanged 160 pounds in eight 20-pound notes.
On Wednesday, staff served the same couple and exchanged four crisp 20-pound bills valued at 80 pounds.
Khun Kanyarat checked the notes today and found the counterfeits. Later a local bank confirmed that only two of the 12 notes were genuine - the rest were good-quality fakes.
Now Khun Kanyarat is out of pocket and police will be placing their faith in security camera footage or bystanders who may have got a good look at the two couples.
Obviously this couple have as much common sense as real cash - unless of course, they've already scammed several other exchange booths. Shouldn't be difficult for the police to catch them.
Posted by agogohome on July 19, 2012 15:51