CHENNAI: A 37-year-old man running a travel agency was arrested by the city police for possession of counterfeit currency notes to the tune of Rs 11 lakh.

The police acted based on a tip-off and searched a lodge in Triplicane on Wednesday. On searching the room, the police recovered counterfeit currency in the denomination of Rs 500. Police also seized genuine Indian currency worth Rs 11 lakh and 25,000 Euros ( Rs 27.59 lakh) and two mobile phones from the room after which police arrested the accused, Shafeeq Rahman (37).

The police sources said that along with Shafeeq Rahman, a Malaysian national is involved in the printing and distribution of counterfeit currency. Further investigation is under way to ascertain the source of the counterfeit notes.

In another case, police recovered papers used to produce counterfeit currency notes in Ramapuram based on a tip-off. The police said that the papers were found to be cut in the size of Rs 10 currency notes and they were placed in the house in Ramapuram more than a year ago. The police then questioned the house owner. Based on the information provided by the house owner, the police have issued summons to three people for an inquiry.