From buying land and cars to prison… the end of Iraq’s “counterfeit currency expert”
From buying land and cars to prison… the end of Iraq’s “counterfeit currency expert”
2025/05/27
The Supreme Judicial Council revealed the arrest of a counterfeit currency dealer who had been circulating since 2019 and had amassed a vast fortune.
Al-Qadaa newspaper said in its issue today, followed by {Euphrates News}: “Information was received by the Baghdad Organized Crime Directorate / Investigation Department about the presence of a group of people in one of the Baghdad areas who are trading in counterfeit currency. As a result, a working team was formed under the direct supervision of the competent investigative judge and moved with the accused who were arrested in order to catch the main accused (A).
When he was arrested, 583 counterfeit 25,000 dinar bills were found in his possession. A printer, a press, ink, and a roughing machine were also seized from his home.
The defendant and the case were referred to the Rusafa Criminal Court, where a formal investigation was initiated. The defendant confessed to counterfeiting currency from 2019 until his arrest, along with his accomplices inside and outside the country.
The convict, according to his confession, was printing counterfeit Iraqi banknotes, cutting them, and pressing them in a roughening machine to achieve a rough texture similar to that of real currency. He enlisted the help of a friend who worked in a library and had experience with computers and printers to print the counterfeit currency.
The convict stated that he had dealt with other defendants, supplying them with counterfeit currency of various denominations for them to sell to customers in the capital, Baghdad. He also stated that he had purchased several plots of land and a car through his work in the counterfeit currency trade.
In turn, the legal representative of the Central Bank of Iraq filed a statement in which he confirmed that he was filing a complaint against the accused in this case, as the currency seized from the accused was counterfeit, according to his department’s letter.
For its part, the court reviewed the seizure report and the letter from the Central Bank of Iraq, Issuance and Treasury Department, Currency Examination and Counterfeiting Detection Section, where the letter confirmed that the seized currency was counterfeit. It also reviewed the statements of the accused, whose papers were scattered, as witnesses and the accused’s confession, and reached a conviction that indicates certainty, conviction and conviction that the available evidence is sufficient and convincing to convict him in accordance with the provisions of Article 52/1/A of the Central Bank of Iraq Law No. 56 of 2004 and to sentence him to severe imprisonment for a period of four years, with reference to the provisions of Article 132/3 of the Penal Code.
The court also granted the injured party, the Central Bank of Iraq, the right to claim compensation before civil courts after the judgment becomes final and the counterfeit amount is confiscated pursuant to the seizure report and sent to the Central Bank for disposal in accordance with the law.
alforatnews.iq
