Brits heading to Spain may end up with fake euros in their pocket, after it emerged a Chinese gang had distributed around 100,000 counterfeit two-euro coins across the country.
The gangsters had got their coins into circulation by putting them into slot machines and selling them to Chinese nationals.
It’s the largest counterfeit coin operation of its kind in Spain and extended across the continent, with 400,000 distributed around Europe.
Policia Nacional, Europol and Catalonia’s Mossos d’Esquadra arrested ten people, alleged to be gang members, and seized two slot machines in Toledo, about an hour south of Madrid.
The slot machines were taken from a workshop in the town, that could churn out up to 1,000 bogus two-euro coins a day.
The joint investigation began in 2018, but authorities found it difficult to pin the gang down due to its structure, their flexibility in relocating the machines, and challenges in tracing the origins of fake coins.
The gang operated around Barcelona, Madrid, and Toledo.
Brits can check whether their euros are real or fake by assessing a few key details about their two-euro coins.
Check the weight, if it feels unusually light or heavy, it’s potentially counterfeit.
However, perhaps the best test of a fake coin is to see if it’s magnetic. Real coins are not magnetic, so if your coin sticks to your magnet, it’s a fake.
Check the edges of the coin too. Real two-euro coins have an intricate contour and imprinted symbols. False coins won’t have this level of detail.
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