Syrian scammers have been caught selling fake US banknotes they claimed were "frozen dollars" available on the cheap due to sanctions.
The fraudsters claimed to have a stash of dollars being sold for 50 cents each because they were linked to sanctioned bank accounts, Syria's Interior Ministry said.
Victims were tricked into handing over real cash in exchange for the "frozen dollars", it said. In fact, they received sealed envelopes containing counterfeit or worthless banknotes, disguised to look like real US currency.
Buying US dollars allows Syrians to do business with the wider world after years of isolation and war, in which their own unstable currency massively declined in value.
Mustafa Dahman, a police chief in a district of Homs, said several people had been arrested and confessed to setting up the scam after the overthrow of former Syrian leader Bashar Al Assad in late 2024.
The Assad regime restricted the use of the dollar, with even the word considered taboo by some. Code words such as "mint" or "parsley" were used instead. Many Syrians had their assets frozen under US sanctions that were lifted by President Donald Trump last year.
Syria unveiled a new currency in December, replacing Assad motifs on its banknotes with images of animals and plants, and knocking two zeroes off to make prices easier to deal with. One US dollar was worth about 11,000 Syrian pounds before the redenomination.
Syria's new leadership has ambitions for an economic recovery fuelled by foreign investment, with major deals already announced by Gulf nations.
Investigators uncovered the banknote fraud after complaints were raised about adverts promoting the "frozen dollars", state media said.
The perpetrators admitted setting up the scheme with the help of "contacts abroad", Mr Dahman said. He said fake cash bundles were prepared inside tightly sealed envelopes before being delivered to victims, after which the scammers would quickly leave the area.
