In the lead up to Christmas, the independent crime-fighting charity, Crimestoppers, is appealing to the public for information on those making, buying or selling counterfeit banknotes.

In the first half of 2017, over 237,000 worthless counterfeit banknotes with a notional value of over £4.88 million were removed from the UK’s streets.

Christmas is a time when more cash changes hands, especially £20 and £50 notes, and fraudsters take advantage of the festive season by targeting busy shops with temporary staff.

Incidents include scammers tricking innocent members of the public into swapping fake £20 notes for two genuine £10 notes, and businesses being left out of pocket if they take a counterfeit note.

Counterfeit notes are also known to be linked to serious and organised criminal gangs. One gang was sentenced to over three years’ imprisonment for the manufacture of £320,000 worth of fake notes. In another more recent case, three men were prosecuted after £40,000 of fake notes were found at a Kent property that was also used to supply cannabis.

Further information on fake notes can be found on Crimestoppers’ web page at fakenotes.co.uk.

If you have information on those making, selling or buying counterfeit notes then contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 or through anonymous online form at crimestoppers-uk.org/give-info.