Wichit Police confirmed the case over the weekend after officers were called to the Lion Exchange booth in front of which the incident occurred at about 5:30pm last Thursday evening (Nov 28).
According to the police report, the shop’s manager alerted officers after a customer ‒ Li Yaru, a Chinese national ‒ presented a stack of US$100 bills for exchange. Staff used an automatic banknote detector, which flagged 49 of the notes as failing the authenticity test.
Police arrived to inspect the scene, and Wisanee Chuthip, who reported the incident, handed over the bills for examination.
During questioning, Ms Li told officers she had obtained the US dollars some 10 years ago while gambling at a casino in Macau. She insisted the notes were genuine but agreed to allow police to seize them for forensic investigation.
All 49 bills have now been sent to Forensic Science Division 8 for official verification.
Wichit Police have placed a temporary hold on Ms Li’s ability to leave the country pending the outcome of the forensic examination. Police said further action will depend on the results of the analysis.