Six Congolese Nationals Arrested With Shs1bn Worth of Fake Dollars in Arua
Police in Arua City have arrested six Congolese nationals for being in possession of fake dollars worth over shs1 billion.
According to police spokesperson, Kituuma Rusoke, the arrest followed intelligence information of a group of individuals who were set to distribute the fake notes to members of the community.
“Our intelligence got information about fellows who had counterfeit money. Acting on that information, our teams set a trap where they were got with $300,000 suspected counterfeit money. This was in bundles of 100,000,” Rusoke said.
He named the suspects as Minike Dudu, Mumbere Asiha, Akwinza Dudu Mitira, Shadrack Kaputara, Jean Pierre Hassan, and Musa Ahmed who were also found with 12 rolled sticks of marijuana.
It is suspected that the fake dollar notes could have been printed from DRC and the suspects wanted to distribute them to Arua. The recent arrest of six Congolese nationals in Arua City for possessing counterfeit U.S. dollars valued at over Shs1 billion adds to a growing list of similar incidents in Uganda. These cases highlight the persistent challenge of counterfeit currency infiltrating the Ugandan economy, often originating from neighboring countries like the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
Uganda has witnessed several significant counterfeit currency operations in recent years.
In 2014, U.S. citizen Ryan Andrew Gustafson was arrested in Uganda for leading an international counterfeit currency operation that flooded the United States with over $2 million in fake bills .
More recently, in January 2023, Ugandan authorities arrested a Congolese trafficker in possession of $500,000 in counterfeit U.S. dollars concealed in his luggage.
These incidents underscore the role of Uganda as both a destination and transit point for counterfeit currency, with many operations linked to the DRC, a known hub for counterfeit production .
The circulation of counterfeit currency poses significant risks to the economy as it undermines the integrity of the financial system, leading to inflationary pressures and loss of investor confidence.
Businesses, particularly small and medium enterprises, face challenges in distinguishing between genuine and fake notes, resulting in financial losses and potential legal liabilities.
Moreover, counterfeit currency operations often fund other illicit activities, including drug trafficking and human smuggling, further destabilizing the region’s security and economic landscape .
In response to the growing threat of counterfeit currency, the Ugandan government has been strengthening its anti-counterfeiting measures and operations against fake currencies.
