Counterfeit bank notes flood Kumba

The city of Kumba in the Southwest Region is witnessing a flood of counterfeited bank notes in circulation.

There are fears that the phenomenon would affect the economy of the town if security is not tightened.

Business people have fallen prey to persons using the fake FCFA 10,000 and FCFA 2000 notes.

Most of the victims are beer parlour operators, roast fish vendors and call box operators.

Despite arrests by the police of such persons, the fake notes seem to be gaining more grounds, given that this is the cocoa season, where businesses are booming in Kumba.

Alice Akole recounted to The Post how she collected an FCFA 10,000 bank note from two young men who transferred credit and only discovered two days later that the money was counterfeit. Akole lamented that the young men bought credit for FCFA 2,000 and collected a balance of FCFA 8,000.

She said, merely looking at the money with her physical eyes, she thought it was a genuine bank note.

Charles Ebot, a bar attendant, said he has been a victim of counterfeited bank notes, repeatedly, reason why his boss opted for a fake note detector. Ebot disclosed that when the fake note is detected; the carrier quickly apologises and claims innocence.

Another victim, Stella Atem said she carried out a transaction at a bank and there were counterfeit notes among the wad that she took home.

"The error I made was that I only discovered the money in the house and when I went back, the cashier disowned the money. My advice to people, especially those who deal with huge amounts of money is to always check it in front of the person paying the money,” Atem cautioned.

The Post gathered that the dealers in such bank notes sometimes work in partnership with bar attendants, taxi drivers, bankers and high ranking people, who have the possibility of exchanging money with many persons in a single day.