Woman arrested for using counterfeit money, including African currency posing as $500 banknote

A woman was arrested on Tuesday on suspicion of using counterfeit banknotes, with police seizing two counterfeit HK$500 banknotes that were based on genuine currency, along with a banknote from an African country bearing the words “Five Hundred Hong Kong Dollars” in Chinese.

The arrest came after police received reports of a woman suspected of using counterfeit HK$500 notes at shops in Yau Ma Tei and Tsim Sha Tsui.

Following an investigation, a 39-year-old local woman Yung was arrested and charged for passing counterfeit bank notes on three occasions - one on January 21 and two on February 23.

She will be brought to the Kowloon City court tomorrow.

Police’s preliminary investigations revealed that the woman used the HK$500 counterfeit banknotes to purchase low-value goods from stores to obtain products and change.

Among the three counterfeit banknotes seized, two were based on genuine currency, while the third was an old banknote from an African country with the Chinese words “Five Hundred Hong Kong Dollars” printed on it.

Police said the woman primarily used the counterfeit banknotes at supermarkets, with no evidence suggesting organized crime involvement. 

Police reminded members of the public that in Hong Kong, the production, circulation or passing of counterfeit banknotes carries a maximum sentence of 14 years in jail.