Even as long serpentine queues continue outside ATMs and banks in the state, counterfeit currency notes of Rs 2,000 were found in circulation in Visakhapatnam with police arresting two people on Tuesday.
The incident came into light when M. Satyanarayana, one of the three accused, paid a fake Rs 2,000 note at a petrol bunk. The workers at the bunk grew suspicious and informed the police, who immediately took him into custody. The Arilova police later arrested his accomplice, A. Yugandhar. The third accused, Yellaji, is still on the run.
Yugandhar runs a photo studio in the city and Yellaji was a frequent visitor to the studio. The plot was hatched at the studio immediately after November 8, when demonetisation was announced and high value note of Rs 2,000 was introduced. The three accused decided to print the new currency notes with the help of a colour printer in Yugandar's studio.
Satyanarayan, who was held from the petrol bunk, told the police that they had not started circulating the fake notes in the city. According to sources, 17 notes of the Rs 2,000 denomination and a currency paper with images of the new notes printed on them were seized from the gang. It is immediately not clear whether the police could bust the gang even before they could do any major damage. An investigation is on.
Police have launched a manhunt for Yellaji, who is a history-sheeter with several cases pending against him.
