Bank on it: Chinese counterfeit cash caper at Chatuchak Market

Police arrested a Chinese man at the Chatuchak Weekend Market in Bangkok yesterday with 95 counterfeit 1,000-baht banknotes in his possession.

Officers from Bang Sue Police Station were called to the market yesterday, October 27, by the owner of a glasses shop, Phatcharanat, who informed them that the Chinese man, identified as Su Zhenfeng, paid 200 baht for glasses with a counterfeit 1,000-baht note.

Phatcharanat examined the banknote and discovered it was fake. He decided to call the police to verify the banknote and arrest the Chinese suspect if he was found guilty.

Upon investigation, officers discovered that the banknotes bore watermarks stating “Copy.” They requested to examine all the banknotes in Su’s possession and found them all to be counterfeit. All of the banknotes featured the same watermarks and the serial number 7J 4556865.

According to a report in Matichon, Su could not communicate in Thai and was not fluent in English either, so the police called an interpreter to the scene.

Through the interpreter, Su admitted that he indeed used the fake banknote to purchase at Phatcharanat’s shop. However, he claimed he had not done so intentionally and was unaware that the banknotes were counterfeit.

Police escorted Su to the station but the legal charges against him have not yet been reported.

In a related case in January, two Thai men were arrested in the Isaan province of Buriram for selling counterfeit US dollar banknotes. The suspects claimed they were merely employees of the producer named Panya, who managed to evade arrest on that occasion.

Another incident was reported in July when a Russian man was arrested in Chon Buri for tricking a Thai man into exchanging his fake euro bills for Thai baht. Officers seized 7,000 euros in counterfeit banknotes, equivalent to approximately 280,000 baht, from the man.

Further reports of counterfeit 1,000-baht banknotes surfaced in April, affecting multiple businesses in the provinces of Samut Songkhram and Ratchaburi in central Thailand. Business operators issued warnings to one another and shared tips on how to identify counterfeit money.