British family of five all arrested in Mallorca for using fake £50 notes

Five members of the same British family have been arrested whilst on holiday in Mallorca for financing their trip with counterfeit money.

They were caught in the coastal resort of Santa Ponsa, on the west of the island, and had been spending the false money on food and drink.

Police say they exchanged a succession of British £50 notes, which turned out to be counterfeit, in a number of establishments.

They were caught when one member of the family handed over a £50 note for a bottle of water and received legal tender in exchange. He became suspicious and alerted the Civil Guard.

Police have confirmed all five members of the family were in Mallorca as tourists. They are described as ‘British and Irish’.

No details have yet been given about their age or relationship to one another or where they come from.

‘The notes are of high quality and have a very similar touch to paper money, with the falsification of watermarks and other security systems, which made it difficult to detect them,’ a police spokesman said

So far, 17 of the counterfeit 50 pound notes have been recovered, together with 400 euros which were real.

A police spokesman said: ‘The notes are of high quality and have a very similar touch to paper money, with the falsification of watermarks and other security systems, which made it difficult to detect them, thus promoting their circulation.’

The 50 pound note handed over for the bottle of water was offered in a shop near the hotel where the family was staying.

All five were arrested on suspicion of falsification of money. It is not known if the police suspect them of peddling the false notes or having made them in the first place.