European police forces break up a dozen euro forgery schemes

European police forces halted a dozen euro note counterfeiting operations in the first six months of the year as well as a number of illegal mints producing counterfeit euro coins, according to Europol, the EU's law enforcement organisation.

Most of the counterfeiting activity is based around eastern Europe. Gangs in Poland, Serbia and Bulgaria have the most extensive distribution networks. Ten substantial counterfeiting print-shops were detected in the EU, and two were found outside the region. Three underground mints, equipped for the production of euro coins, were dismantled in Spain and Portugal in the first six months of the year, according to Europol.

The Central Bank here has warned people to be vigilant. It says while the number of fake euro notes in circulation is relatively small, it is increasing.

"We would be very wary of creating a scare but we would urge people to be vigilant at all times," said spokeswoman Ms Elaine Mannix. She added old people could often be an easy target for those wishing to pass off fake notes.

Most of the counterfeit notes in circulation are of very poor quality. High grade imitations are difficult to produce because of a combination of security features on the notes, including water marks and holograms.

Micro-lettering, which leaves a tiny print on certain parts of notes, makes fake euro notes very difficult to pass in banks and other businesses where experienced cash handlers are employed.

The warning from the Central Bank followed new figures from the European Central Bank (ECB) which revealed the volume of counterfeit euro notes detected in circulation, both within and outside the EU, jumped more than 10-fold in the first six months of this year compared with the first half of last year.

The Central Bank and the ECB both refused to disclose the amount of fake notes in circulation in individual member-states. "It is an EU problem, not one confined to certain states," said a spokesman for the ECB.

The euro is now the second largest currency in the world after the US dollar. Before it was introduced, the counterfeiting of domestic currency in EU member-states was less attractive to organised criminals because of the relatively small marketplaces for the fake notes.

However, since the introduction of the euro, the marketplace has grown much larger, making counterfeiting a more lucrative business.

According to ECB figures, in the first six months of last year, 21,965 fake notes of differing denominations were detected. In the second half of that year the figure jumped to 145,163. It increased further, to 230,534, in the first six months of this year.

The ECB data reveals €50 notes are by far the most popular with counterfeiters, with 152,072 detected in the first half of the year. Next most popular was the €20 note, with 54,248 detected, followed by the €100 note (14,839 detections), €200 note (5,516 detections) and €10 note (2,543 detections). There were just 844 €5 notes detected in the period and 435 €500 notes.

Europol said more than 1,132 cases targeting counterfeiters had begun and 1,031 perpetrators had been identified. It has established a joint investigative team to monitor intelligence supplied by European central banks and EU police forces as well as the US Secret Service.

A computerised counterfeit monitoring system has also been set up to store information on counterfeiters and particular trends in member-states.