HELSINKI, May 15 (Xinhua) -- Finnish Customs has uncovered an aggravated money counterfeiting case involving approximately 260,000 euros (291,526 U.S. dollars) in counterfeit currency shipped into the country earlier this year, the agency said on Thursday.
The counterfeit banknotes were delivered to Finland via express freight and postal parcels originating from Italy, in at least four separate shipments.
In an interview with national broadcaster Yle on Thursday, lead investigator Tero Virtanen described the operation as Finland's largest-ever counterfeiting case. He said that the counterfeit money was consistently traced back to Italy and entered Finland through commercial delivery channels.
Authorities have identified five Finnish citizens as suspects in the case, three of whom remain in custody. The preliminary investigation involving the detained suspects has been concluded, and the case has now been submitted to the Southern Finland Prosecution District for consideration of formal charges.
"At the beginning of the year, we received numerous reports from the public, and it quickly became evident that counterfeit money was circulating in Finland," Virtanen said in a press release. He also cautioned that some of the fake banknotes may still be in circulation. ■
