Surat: The Special Operations Group (SOG) of Surat police today arrested two individuals while they were attempting to exchange fake ₹500 notes in the Punagam Vegetable Market. The police also seized counterfeit currency worth ₹9,000 from them.

During interrogation, it was revealed that the accused used the codeword “Mavo” while exchanging fake notes. Upon receiving genuine currency in return, they used the phrase “Shekelo Mavo.”

The arrested individuals have been identified as Vijay Chauhan and Suresh alias Guruji alias Chakor Lathidadiya. Suresh hails from the Malda region near the Bangladesh border in West Bengal and allegedly procured the fake notes from a person residing near the border. The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has already registered three cases against him. Previously, he had visited Mumbai three times to exchange counterfeit currency.

SOG DCP Rajdeepsinh Nakum stated that the police had been monitoring suspicious currency exchanges in the leafy and vegetable markets for the past 15 days. Following an investigation, the SOG arrested Suresh and Vijay Chauhan. A subsequent raid at their residences led to the seizure of ₹5,000 in counterfeit notes from Suresh and ₹4,000 from Vijay.

Authorities noted that the seized counterfeit notes are of high quality, featuring advanced printing, watermarks, security threads, and paper similar to genuine currency. The accused had procured ₹6 lakh worth of fake notes from Tahir Sheikh of West Bengal by paying ₹2 lakh. For every ₹1 lakh in genuine currency, he received ₹3 lakh in counterfeit notes. Investigations revealed that he had smuggled ₹6 lakh in fake currency into Surat on three separate occasions.

Officials are also probing a possible link to Bangladesh, as Tahir Sheikh, the alleged supplier, is from Malda, West Bengal, near the Bangladesh border. The SOG is investigating whether the counterfeit notes were printed in Bangladesh or locally by Sheikh. A team has been dispatched to arrest him.

Investigations have further revealed that Suresh alias Guruji has a long criminal history and is known within criminal circles as an expert in handling counterfeit notes. He has previously served six years in jail for various offenses.

After the arrest, the police seized 18 counterfeit currency notes of ₹500 denomination, amounting to ₹9,000. They also confiscated three mobile phones worth ₹21,000, a fake money detector machine valued at ₹500, and ₹1,03,830 in cash obtained from exchanging fake notes. The total value of the seized items stands at ₹1,25,330. The investigation is ongoing, and authorities anticipate further developments in the case. DeshGujarat