Brief: Bulgarian police thwart €50m fake banknote scam

Five people have been arrested in an operation in Bulgaria against a criminal ring counterfeiting euro banknotes.

The country's General Directorate Combating Organising Crime (GDCOC) - part of the Ministry of the Interior - carried out the operation in the city of Plovdiv and according to a press release "prevented the production of almost 50 million in counterfeit euros."

Counterfeit banknotes as well as bulk holograms used to make the fake banknotes look authentic were seized in the raid. Additional details are not yet available, but the MoI has released several pictures.