A man from Quebec is facing jail time after attempting to smuggle a staggering 26,630 counterfeit toonies into Canada. The incident marks one of the largest counterfeit coin schemes in Canadian history.
The story unfolded in January 2023 when a Canadian border agent stationed at Montréal-Mirabel Airport in Quebec flagged a suspicious package arriving from China. The package was found to contain 12,000 fake two-dollar coins, commonly referred to as toonies. Authorities later uncovered an additional 14,630 counterfeit toonies on Jean-François Généreux’s property, bringing the total number of seized fake coins to 26,630.
The counterfeit toonies had a face value of over $50,000, but Généreux had reportedly purchased them for a mere five cents each through a Chinese website. The scale of the operation prompted immediate action by law enforcement, culminating in Généreux’s arrest and eventual conviction.
This wasn’t Généreux’s first encounter with the law. Court records revealed a two-decade history of arrests, many of which involved counterfeiting and forgery. Généreux had previously been involved in manufacturing fake goods and falsifying documents, making him a known figure among local law enforcement.
Despite his history, Généreux’s sentence was notably lenient. The maximum penalty for currency counterfeiting in Canada is 14 years in prison. However, Généreux received a nine-month sentence.
While Généreux’s case may be one of the largest, it’s unlikely to be the last. Currency experts believe that counterfeit coins could become a more significant issue in the coming years. The governments, law enforcement, and financial institutions will need to work together to bolster defenses against counterfeiters, from improving detection technologies at borders to tightening penalties for offenders.