Alex Trelinski
LUCK ran out for two men who decided to use Alicante Casino as a laundering point for 15 fake €500 notes.
The men each face over seven years in jail after swapping the high quality counterfeits for gambling chips on April 22, 2019.
The €500 note was a notorious target for counterfeiters around Europe, and by coincidence, the European Central Bank(ECB) stopped issuing it five days after the men tried to pull off their con.
The note remains as legal tender in countries that have the Euro as their currency, but most outlets refuse to accept it.
In June 2020, around 424 million €500 notes are still in circulation across Europe, accounting for one point seven per cent of all banknotes according to the ECB.
The men obtained their bogus money from another person who has never been arrested, but they have been charged with producing fake currency.
Up to five notes were exchanged for chips at a single time on their casino trip to try to avoid attracting any suspicion.
Less than an hour later, the men cashed in as they converted €7,400 of chips into genuine tender, without having too much of a flutter at the gambling tables.
Casino management carried out a close check on the impressive-looking fake notes and spotted that they had been duped.
The men were prevented from leaving the building and the police were called in.
