Muzaffarpur/Motihari, Dec. 2: Counterfeit notes amounting to Rs 20 lakh were seized from a youth during an inspection on a bus near Piprakothi in West Champaran district this afternoon.

Personnel of Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI), Muzaffarpur and Patna zones made the seizure, touted as the largest of its kind in the region in recent times, from a man identified as Mohammad Ashraful (28).

Talking to The Telegraph, DRI assistant director V. Vikas said acting on a tip-off, a raiding team, comprising senior intelligence officer H.C. Laskar and inspectors Direndra Kumar and Shivendra Satyarthi, conducted a thorough search of a Dalkhola (Bengal)-Motihari bus on NH-28 near Mufassil police station of West Champaran district.

The intelligence team caught Ashraful while frisking the bus passengers.

The youth claimed to be a resident of Malda in Bengal. Ashraful’s airbag was found containing counterfeit notes worth Rs 20 lakh in denomination of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000.

While being grilled, Ashraful disclosed the modus operandi of the gangsters involved in circulating counterfeit notes in India.

He also confessed to his crime and revealed names of several carrier agents working with the gang he belonged to, along the India-Nepal border.

“Ashraful, who is believed to be working for some network, had boarded the bus at Siliguri (Bengal) for Motihari, with an intention to pump the fake currency in East and West Champaran districts,” said the DRI assistant director.