Police issue warning on fake P500 bills

With Christmas just two months away, Metro police chief Deputy Director General Reynaldo Velasco warned the public yesterday on the proliferation of fake P500 bills.

Velasco issued the warning after elements of the Eastern Police District (EPD), under Chief Superintendent Rolando Sacramento, arrested Monday two people who yielded 93 fake P500 bills in Pasig City.

"The public should be extra careful because we expect the syndicate to flood the streets with fake bills especially during the holidays," Velasco said in an interview.

In his report, Sacramento said a vendor in Barangay Pinagbuhatan sought the help of barangay officials after a certain Merlina de Omania paid her with a fake P500 bill.

When arrested, De Omania, of Block 22 Kenneth Road corner Eusebio Avenue, Nagpayong 11, yielded 49 more pieces of fake P500 bills, all bearing serial number MG770577.

During tactical interrogation, De Omania pointed to her housemate, Samuel Alviola, as the source of the fake bills. She then led police operatives to a nearby billiard hall where Alviola was waiting for her. Confiscated from Alviola were another 43 fake bills, all with serial number NM902611.

Sacramento said an official of the Banko Sentral ng Pilipinas confirmed all the recovered bills were fake. "The Central Bank is interested in knowing the source of the fake bills," said Sacramento, as he ordered the filing of illegal possession of counterfeit treasury notes against De Omania and Alviola before the Pasig City prosecutor’s office. – Non Alquitran