Phuket —
At 10:00 AM on July 28th, 2024, Kamala police officers reported the arrest of a Russian tourist involved in the exchange of counterfeit foreign currency in Kamala, Kathu.
According to the police, the arrest followed complaints from victims who unknowingly exchanged fake foreign banknotes between July 23-27, 2024. Following an investigation, police apprehended 22-year-old Russian national Ms. Evgeniia, no last name provided, at a pool villa in Kamala on the evening of July 27th, with 32 counterfeit 50-dollar bills.
During initial questioning, Evgeniia claimed ignorance of the counterfeit nature of the bills, stating her father gave her sixty 50-dollar bills for a trip to Phuket. She had allegedly exchanged four bills at a currency exchange counter in front of a shopping center in Kamala on July 23rd, receiving 5,348 baht without issue.
Further investigation revealed an additional 32 counterfeit 50-dollar bills mixed with real ones out of 75 total bills. The estimated loss from exchanging these fake notes would have been 57,000 baht. The suspect and her friends had traveled from Moscow, Russia, via Shanghai to Phuket on July 22, staying at a pool villa in Kamala.
Evgeniia faces charges of importing counterfeit banknotes into the kingdom, possessing counterfeit notes with intent to use, and evading customs regulations. Phuket local authorities are expanding the investigation to determine if this case is linked to an international counterfeit money syndicate targeting tourist destinations.
