The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) under its Federal Commercial Crime Section’s Integrated Counterfeit Enforcement Team (ICET) has recently launched a website aimed at educating the public in the detection of counterfeit Canadian coins. The website is designed to provide information on how to detect counterfeit money and how to avoid becoming a victim. The public and more specifically coin collectors can familiarize themselves with the methods of detecting counterfeit Canadian coins by reviewing the counterfeit coin examples on the RCMP website. The site will regularly be updated with digital images, specifications and identifiers for all recently identified counterfeit Canadian coins circulating in Canada and abroad.
During the past few years, Canadian Coin collectors have been noticing a substantial increase in the number of Counterfeit Canadian coins that have surfaced over the internet and at coin shows across the country. Sgt. Tony FARAHBAKHCHIAN, the RCMP Pacific Region Counterfeit Coordinator, believes that this problem is directly related to the level of sophistication used by overseas manufacturers in the production of fake coins and the ease at which they are being sold over the internet.
In 2009, it was brought to the attention of the RCMP that sellers from Asia had been selling counterfeit coins on eBay. These coins were replicas of rare Canadian coins from the turn of the century. Upon consultation with the RCMP, eBay cooperated fully with the RCMP’s request to remove all current listings from the Canada and USA sites. However, a substantial number of these counterfeits have already made their way into private collections, which is another reason it is important for people to be aware of this website. You can visit the RCMP counterfeit site for any counterfeit coin identifying tips.
In 2009, it was brought to the attention of the RCMP that sellers from Asia had been selling counterfeit coins on eBay. These coins were replicas of rare Canadian coins from the turn of the century. Upon consultation with the RCMP, eBay cooperated fully with the RCMP’s request to remove all current listings from the Canada and USA sites. However, a substantial number of these counterfeits have already made their way into private collections, which is another reason it is important for people to be aware of this website. You can visit the RCMP counterfeit site for any counterfeit coin identifying tips.
Released by:
Sgt. Tony Farahbakhchian
RCMP Pacific Region Counterfeit Coordinator
E-Division Federal Commercial Crime Section
604-598-5393
