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Mangaluru police seize demonetised currency notes amounting to ₹1.92 crore

Accused claim the notes were procured from Shivamogga and Chitradurga districts

Barke police in Mangaluru seized demonetised currency notes of ₹500 and ₹1,000 denomination amounting to ₹1,92,50,000 from three persons.

Mangaluru Police Commissioner N. Shashi Kumar told reporters on November 19 that the currency notes were seized when the accused were attempting to transport them in a multi-utility vehicle. He gave the names of the accused as Zabeer and Hammabba, both working as drivers, and Deepak Kumar, who assists his father who is an electrical contractor; all of them are residents of Mangaluru.

Preliminary inquiry revealed that the accused procured the currency notes from a few persons in Shivamogga and Chitradurga districts. The accused reportedly approached a few people in Mangaluru offering these notes at 20% of their face value. They claimed that banks would accept such notes at 50% of the face value under a special provision, Mr. Kumar said.

Stating that the demonetised currency notes were not even worth the value of the paper they were printed on, the Commissioner urged people not to fall prey to people claiming to offer demonetised currencies at discounted rates.

The accused have been booked for cheating under the Indian Penal Code and The Specified Bank Notes (Cessation of Liabilities) Act, 2017. A person voluntarily holding such ceased currency notes is liable to be punished with a ₹50,000 penalty or five times the face value of the notes, whichever is higher, under the Cessation Act, Mr. Kumar informed the reporters.

The accused would be produced in the jurisdictional court on November 19 and their custody would be sought for further probe. Police would verify from whom the accused obtained the currency notes and to whom they were attempting to provide the same.

Deputy Commissioners of Police Hariram Shankar (Law & Order) and Dinesh Kumar (Crime & Traffic) and Barke Police Inspector Jyotirlinga Honnakatti were present.