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The Province (Vancouver, BC)
Friday, March 7, 2003
Section: Front
Byline: Salim Jiwa

High-school kids pass bogus bucks

It started as a student lark, a bit of fun they found in faking $10 bills to give away to school friends.

It quickly turned into a small -- and illegal -- industry when they realized that local businesses, even cabbies, were falling for the bogus bills.

And now police say the group of high-school kids behind the money-minting scheme has flooded Richmond businesses with the counterfeit cash.

The masterminds of the scheme, five boys aged 12 to 18, quickly cashed in on the gullibility of the merchants. They began charging fellow students for the fake money at an exchange rate of $10 in real Canadian money for $30 in fakes.

For their customers, it was magical. They would buy a chocolate bar with the fake cash and get not only the candy, but about $9 in real change.

Police would not say which school the boys are from, but confirmed that the buyers had come from all area schools.

Meantime, The Province has learned that the young crooks are now making their own $50 bills.

Yesterday, a 7-Eleven clerk at a store on Richmond's No. 3 Road told The Province she had caught children trying to pass a fake $50 bill.

"I called the police this morning and they were arrested," she said.

The same clerk, who asked not to be named, said a few days ago she caught a fake $10 bill.

Police say the counterfeit bills have spread to every corner of Richmond.

RCMP Cpl. Peter Thiessen said yesterday that calls have come in from cab drivers, McDonald's restaurants, 7-Eleven stores and even Vancouver International Airport.

"It's not at the gang level," Thiessen said. "These are entrepreneurs who felt that they would take the opportunity to make some money, which they felt was limited risk.

"They made it up and handed it out free -- and when the kids saw that they could pass it, the kids would come back for more.

"So now they started charging -- 10 bucks for 30 bucks worth of counterfeit."

Thiessen said the investigation -- which eventually involved the RCMP's youth section and gang squad, community police and the school administration -- was launched when information was received that five local high-school students had used a computer and an ink-jet printer to print cash.

The production was being carried out at home, but the distribution was apparently done at school.

"Several thousand dollars were produced," said Thiessen. "The bills were of poor quality."

Thiessen said the fake bills were passed at high-volume businesses such as fast-food outlets and convenience stores.

"The school liaison officers started hearing about it as the kids had started talking about it," said Thiessen.

"So as we speak, we are trying to pick up these five kids. . . . Whether charges will be laid is not clear, or whether they will be dealt with."

Richmond school superintendent Chris Kelly said he was not aware of the scope of the problem until he got a call from The Province, but he vowed to take steps to stop the counterfeiting operations.

"Your call is bringing it to my attention, so I will be following up on it," said Kelly, who plans to write the schools to try to bring an end to the problem.

"We will impress on all our students how foolhardy and irresponsible this is."

Police said some of the fake bills bear the Serial No. FEB67799816.

Police ask that victims of the cash scam phone them at 604-278-1212, Local 2273.

© Copyright  2003 The Vancouver Province

Edition: Final
Story Type: News

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