Three people were taken into custody after a Modern Coast bus carrying counterfeit money was stopped by customs authorities at the Busia border crossing on Friday.
The Ugandan Revenue Authority (URA) stated in a statement that Sh1.3 million in local money was recovered from the bus.
“Customs officials from Uganda Revenue Authority have seized counterfeit money which was being smuggled into the country via a modern coast bus. The Ugandan currency notes had been stashed in a conspicuous package that had been declared but later manually crossed checked,” URA said in a statement.
The authority claims that the officers who opened the package were suspicious because the money had been proclaimed without first being physically crossed checked. The officials then discovered an envelope meticulously hidden inside which contained 10,000 and 500 Ugandan currency notes.
Initially, it was intended to hold the company accountable for failing to disclose the money, but after further investigation, it became clear that the money was fake.
In accordance with Ugandan legislation, counterfeit money carries a prison sentence in addition to a fine equal to 50% of the value of the item.
The East African Community Customs Act of 2004’s Section 199, on the other hand, imposes a fee of no more than Sh500,000 on such modes of transportation.
URA stated that it continues to take action against those who would sabotage the economy by inducing fictitious inflation.
