Police are in search of a swindler who tricked a local business owner into handing him $20,000 in an elaborate deception.
During March the male suspect approached at least 10 different businesses, telling the owners the same story – he had a machine to legitimately duplicate their money.
According to police investigations, the suspect approached a Slacks Creek business owner between 11 and 26 March, offering to buy the store.
He also said he could duplicate the owner’s money using a large, black, wooden box with a power cord he had brought with him.
The owner wanted in, and on 24 March he withdrew $20,000 from his bank account.
He handed over the cash and it was run through the “money duplicating” machine.
The suspect also ran his own bundle of cash through the machine.
“The box made a humming noise as this occurred,” a police spokesperson said.
Once it stopped, the suspect transferred the two bundles of cash into a safe he had brought with him.
“The man said he would return the following day (25 March) and open the safe together,” the police spokesperson said.
When he did not show the owner forced open the safe to find two bundles of counterfeit cash.
A couple of weeks prior to this theft, on 9 March, the alleged thief approached a Browns Plains kebab-store owner with the same offer.
He offered to buy the store, and also claimed he could duplicate his money.
He met and communicated with the kebab-store owner several times over the next few days.
On 25 March, he brought the box and the safe to the store owner’s other business in Browns Plains, attempting to run the same scam he’d successfully managed the day before.
But this time he wanted more.
The suspect put two bundles of what he claimed was $100,000 cash into the machine, and asked the owner to contribute $50,000.
When the owner refused the suspect became agitated.
“The man became angry, transferred the two bundles from the box to safe, and said he would be in contact the following day before leaving,” the police spokesperson said.
The suspect again left the safe behind for the owner to hold onto.
“When the owner could not get hold of the suspect the following day, he forced opened the safe,” the spokesperson said.
Photocopies of cash was found inside.
Investigations suggest the suspect was targeting businesses across Logan.
Footage acquired by the police show the suspect was travelling in a white Toyota Camry sedan.
