Man caught using fake notes in Odisha, leads cops to currency racket mastermind

India Today

13-05-2025

A major counterfeit currency racket was busted in Odisha with the arrest of the alleged kingpin from Jajpur district. Police recovered fake currency notes worth Rs 2.72 lakh from his house on Monday.The breakthrough came after a man was caught red-handed in Bhadrak on May 10 while trying to use fake notes at a shop. Locals raised an alarm after noticing something odd about a Rs 200 note, and managed to detain one of the two men involved. The suspect was handed over to the police, leading to further investigation.advertisementDays later, the mastermind behind the fake currency racket, identified as Chandramani Bal, was arrested.
'Chandramani is a history-sheeter and has previously been arrested by Andhra Pradesh Police in a similar case. He has been running this operation for several years and distributing counterfeit notes across multiple districts in Odisha and beyond,' said Bhadrak SDPO Bichitrananda Sethi during a press briefing.Acting on information from the detained man, Dasarathpur police raided Chandramani's residence and found a colour printer, cutting tools, and several bundles of fake currency. The notes had been carefully printed and trimmed, ready for circulation.Police revealed that Rs 7,000 in fake notes were seized from the man caught in Bhadrak, which helped them trace the operation back to its source. The racket is believed to have spread counterfeit currency to various parts of the state.advertisementOfficials said the investigation is ongoing to identify other members of the network and assess the total scale of the operation.