SPECIAL REPORT: Businesses have seen a spate of incidents as social media is awash with accounts advertising huge bundles of counterfeit cash for sale
Shopkeeper Perpetina Lourdusamy, 56, with counterfeit banknotes in her store on County Road.(Image: Liverpool Echo)
Liverpool’s County Road is awash with counterfeit notes as local businesses struggle to spot convincing fakes. Multiple businesses on the north Liverpool high street and the surrounding area have reported customers attempting to use counterfeit cash in recent weeks as they count the cost of lost merchandise.
The ECHO has seen several Liverpool-based social media accounts offering fake bank notes for sale on platforms such as Instagram, Telegram, and Whatsapp. When the ECHO visited, Perpetina Lourdusamy, 56, stands behind the till at the Go Local on County Road.
Two convincing counterfeit £20 notes were taped above the bottles of vodka and Martini. The shop took both fakes in the last week of November. She said: “£40 is an awful lot of products. It wipes out our profits. It has gotten worse recently, but we’re more alert to it now, and the people doing it will likely go elsewhere.”
Counterfeit money is being advertised openly on social media by accounts appearing to be based in Liverpool. Several Instagram accounts have been seen by the ECHO, linking to profiles on messaging services such as Telegram and WhatsApp.
One Liverpool-based seller quoted the ECHO £300 for £4,000 worth of notes when contacted. The seller also shared a video of thousands of pounds worth of counterfeit notes bagged-up and ready to go. A counterfeit note seller also shared a menu for a plethora of drugs, from several types of valium to zopiclone sleeping pills, and from cocaine to benzodiazepines.
Rajee Gamage, 45, owner of PXK Booze, holds a fake £10 note used on County Road, Liverpool.(Image: Liverpool Echo)
Rajee Gamage, 45, owner of PXK Booze pulled a counterfeit note from his wallet when the ECHO visited to ask about the issue. The £10 note was almost identical to the real thing, but had a precision-made adhesive strip stuck over the clear plastic section.
When peeled away, the words ‘Prop Money’ and ‘COPY’ are revealed. The note was received last week. Rajee did not notice the fake before the individual had left the shop.
Rajee said: “I’ve had a few twenties, and a few tens. I wouldn’t usually check tenners. The bank won’t take it. It hurts our business; if you take a couple of these a day, it wipes out your profits. We need a solution, and everyone needs a machine [to check notes], but they’re expensive.”
Counterfeit banknotes used on County Road.(Image: Liverpool Echo)
Jeff Kelly’s newsagent, Kelly’s News, founded by Jeff’s father in the 1970s, is already struggling with a drop in footfall in the area. Jeff, 64, says takings have dropped 60% in two years at the shop on Walton Road.
Jeff said: “There have been loads of fake notes going around. We had two yesterday. All the businesses down the road have been getting them. It’s a big killer for businesses. They’re everywhere around Liverpool at the moment.”
Instagram is awash with accounts offering counterfeit cash for sale. The ECHO quickly identified eight such accounts ostensibly based in Liverpool. Many of the accounts share images of huge bundles of fake notes, and many of the fakes are very convincing.
Liverpool counterfeit cash ‘everywhere’
Bev Martin, 60, manager at the Royal Oak pub on Walton Road, has paid £120 out of her own pocket to pay for a machine to check for counterfeit notes after a spate of incidents. The pub took £100 in counterfeit notes last month.
A customer attempted to use a fake note as recently as Sunday, November 30. Bev said: “It upset me. It’s £100 down the drain. I have an overall figure I have to meet everyday or I can’t close my computer down at the end of the day. It has a huge knock-on effect for the whole business.”
A machine used to check counterfeit banknotes in the Royal Oak pub on County Road.(Image: Liverpool Echo)
Carl Swindells, manager of the Thomas Frost Wetherspoon pub, said the business has also been targeted by individuals trying to pass off dummy notes as the real thing. He said: “We’ve had a couple of fake notes lately, and we’ve had to put a sign on the bar.”
Carl said individuals have attempted to use fake notes in the fruit machines in recent weeks. The machines shut down when fake notes are used.
He added: “It’s unusual to have this number, especially in a Wetherspoons; they usually target the smaller venues. You can usually spot the people using them.”
Counterfeit banknotes used on County Road.(Image: Liverpool Echo)
A spokesperson for the Public Protection team at Liverpool City Council said: “If you are offered notes at less than their face value it probably means they are counterfeit. Passing them on is a criminal offence.
“If you suspect you have one you should pass it to the police or hand it in to a bank. You can check if a note is genuine by looking for the clear watermark or transparent window with images or text embedded within it.”
Do you have a tip or a story? Contact jon.blackburn@liverpoolecho.co.uk