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European cops raid darknet counterfeit euro buyers

Police have carried out raids across Europe targeting the buyers of thousands of counterfeit euro banknotes that had been purchased on the darknet.

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European cops raid darknet counterfeit euro buyers

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Last week, police from seven countries carried out 36 house searches and detained 44 suspects for questioning, arresting 11.

More than 26,000 fake notes - with a "value" of EUR1.3 million - were delivered to buyers by what Europol says is the second-largest counterfeit currency producer it has identified operating on the Darknet.

The police operation saw 27 raids in Germany, with others made in Austria, France, Greece, Ireland, Luxembourg and Spain. A clandestine print shop was also dismantled in Germany.

In addition to fake banknotes, police seized drugs, weapons, doping substances, illegally procured medicines, forged documents and virtual currency.


The raids came after Portuguese police hit a digital print shop in July, arresting five members of the gang making and selling the fake money.

According to the BBC, many of the sales occurred on a now-closed site called Wall Street Market. The counterfeit notes were exchanged for cryptocurencies in an effort to maintain secrecy.

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