Frank Bourassa had printed off $250m (£194m) in forged American bank notes before the Secret Service finally caught up with him
In the years that followed Bourassa became the most prolific counterfeiter in US history, producing $250m in forged American bank notes in an illicit print shop he set up on a farm.
He was set to make $75m , in real money, if he was able to shift his entire supply of bogus bank notes.Officers released this image of some Bourassa's unfinished notes after his arrest. Pic: Royal Canadian Mounted Police The counterfeiter would add more security features and the bank notes' green and peach colouring in his print shop."I told these guys I was high up in an investment company and I needed a very secure type of paper.The counterfeiter contacted"tens and tens" of companies before a"very specialised" firm in another part of the world accepted the order.
The counterfeiter kitted it out with a full colour printing press that cost 125,000 Canadian dollars . "My friend specifically targeted gangs involved in the import/export business so we could get that paper as far away from us as possible. "I had been caught because of a transaction I did with the fifth customer I had obtained. He was unaware that he had been infiltrated by the police."
He was told he was facing up to 14 years in prison, but said he only expected to serve a sixth of his sentence."This changed everything because they wanted to extradite me to the US.Bourassa was charged with the possession of the printing plates, possession of forged notes, and the transferring of the fake cash to the client who was caught in the sting.He was then jailed without the option of bail ahead of his trial.
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