Bridgnorth man arrested over suspected coin counterfeiting
A Bridgnorth man and two others have been arrested and tens of thousands of suspected counterfeit coins have been seized in a large-scale police operation in Wombourne.
Around 20 police officers took part in a warrant under the Forgery and Counterfeiting Act at a unit on Heathmill Industrial Estate this morning.
On entry to the premises, officers discovered several thousand stamped and finished ‘£1 coins and approximately 50 thousand blank coins. Suspected coin pressing and other machinery on a large scale was also found.
Officials from the Royal Mint attended the premises to assist police with their investigation. Staffordshire Police and the Counterfeiting Unit of the Serious and Organised Crime Agency (SOCA) also took part in the investigation.
A 53-year-old man from Bridgnorth, a 41-year-old man from the Spalding area and a 43-year-old man from the Tipton area were all arrested on suspicion of counterfeiting £1 coins.
All three were taken into custody at Shrewsbury Police Station, where they are due to be interviewed.
Following the warrant, further searches were carried out at other address in the Bridgnorth, Spalding and Tipton areas.
Detective Chief Inspector Alan Edwards, head of CID in Shropshire, said the warrant had been executed following extensive intelligence work.
"This was a cross-border operation with Staffordshire Police, also working with SOCA's Counterfeiting Unit and involved about 20 officers," he said.
"The suspected counterfeit coins found are very high quality and would be extremely difficult to tell apart from a genuine £1 coin."
Regular surveys by the Royal Mint since 2002 have indicated a gradual increase in the volume of counterfeit £1 coins in circulation. The most recent survey indicated a counterfeit rate of just over three per cent.
