Film money case: Anklamerin has to pay for fake money!

Film money case: Anklamerin has to pay for fake money!

In a legal aftermath of the trade in “film money,” the Neubrandenburg regional court made it clear: The state is not kidding here. A 26-year-old woman from the Anklam region was convicted in 14 cases for distributing so-called counterfeit money. Her appeal failed after she sought a more lenient sentence, which was rejected as inappropriate by appeal judge Urte Brinkmann. The judge emphasized that the original sentence of one year suspended for three years was already favorable for the defendant.

The woman and an acquaintance had obtained large amounts of “theater or film money” between 2019 and 2020. She herself stated that she needed this for poker and Monopoly games, but this statement was not believed by the responsible authorities. Instead, she sold the excess counterfeit money over the Internet at very low prices, generating income of almost 2,000 euros. She now has to pay this back.

The rise of “Movie Money”

The problem surrounding counterfeit money has grown in recent years. Current reports, as described by n-tv.de, show that “Movie Money” in particular, i.e. counterfeit money with the imprint “Movie Money” or “Prop copy”, has become increasingly popular. These fakes look deceptively real, but upon closer inspection they quickly turn out to be joke items or souvenirs. Older 10 and 20 euro notes are particularly affected by this.

The Bundesbank has already discovered that these counterfeits come primarily from the Far East and have been in circulation since 2019. In just the first half of 2020, more than 34,100 such makeshift coins were recognized in Germany. Compared to the previous year, the proportion of counterfeit 10 and 20 euro notes has increased by 12%.

Looking at the statistics

According to a study by the German Bundesbank, the development of counterfeits in Germany between 2005 and 2024 is documented. Even if the counterfeit rate is relatively low, the risk of coming into contact with counterfeit money is not zero. According to current statistics, there are around 8 counterfeit banknotes per 10,000 inhabitants every year.

Although the situation in the first half of 2020 remained similar to the previous year with an estimated loss of around 1.6 million euros from counterfeits, it is clear that the authorities are actively countering these trends. The case of the woman from Anklam is just the tip of the iceberg in the fight against counterfeits and their spread.

Given these developments, it is clear that anyone who deals in counterfeits is playing with fire and the consequences must always be taken seriously.