I'm the genuine article
before you dismiss me, this has nothing to do with 9-11 etc.

It involves $134 billion in US Treasury Bonds (real or fake) and the complete blanket ban by all major news networks on the story.

Have a read of this story to get you started...

www.asianews.it/index.php?l=en&art=15456&size=A

"Milan (AsiaNews) – Italy’s financial police (Guardia italiana di Finanza) has seized US bonds worth US 134.5 billion from two Japanese nationals at Chiasso (40 km from Milan) on the border between Italy and Switzerland. They include 249 US Federal Reserve bonds worth US$ 500 million each, plus ten Kennedy bonds and other US government securities worth a billion dollar each.
Italian authorities have not yet determined whether they are real or fake, but if they are real the attempt to take them into Switzerland would be the largest financial smuggling operation in history; if they are fake, the matter would be even more mind-boggling because the quality of the counterfeit work is such that the fake bonds are undistinguishable from the real ones.

What caught the policemen’s attention were the billion dollar securities. Such a large denomination is not available in regular financial and banking markets. Only states handle such amounts of money.

The question now is who could or would counterfeit or smuggle these non-negotiable bonds.

In order to stop money laundering Italian law sets a ceiling of 10,000 euros per person for importing or exporting money without declaring it. The penalty for violating the law is 40 per cent of the money seized.

If the certificates were real, for Italy it would be like hitting the jackpot. The fine alone would amount to € (euro) 38 billion, five times the estimated cost of rebuilding quake-devastated Abruzzi region. It would help Italy’s eliminate its public deficit.

If the certificates are fakes the two Japanese nationals could get a very lengthy jail sentence for fraud.

As soon as the seizure was made the US Embassy in Rome was informed. Italian and US secret services were called in to assist the Italian financial police.

Some important international financial newspapers had already reported on the existence of ‘funny money’ circulating on parallel, i.e. unofficial, financial markets.

For AsiaNews a few points need considering:

1. When it comes to Italy the world press has tended to focus on Italian Prime Minister Berlusconi’s personal problems rather than on stories like the bonds smuggling affair which has been front page on Italian newspapers.

2. The fear of counterfeit bonds and securities has spread across Asia with the result that real securities are also considered with suspicion.

3. During the Second World War several countries at war printed and put in circulation perfectly counterfeit enemy money. It is also historically established that some central banks, like the Bank of Italy 65 years ago, issued the same securities twice (identical registered number and code). This way they could print more money with legal tender than they officially declared. The main difference though is that 65 years ago the world was involved in a bloody war, which is not the case today.
"

For those who are new to this story, this should help

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chiasso_financial_smuggling_case
(knackerz is skinning up, Fri 28 Aug 2009, 3:52, 12 replies)

you fucking mong
at least do a google news search before you say no major news services have written about it. everyone with at least half a brain determined early on that the bonds in question were clearly fake. except your conspiracy-for-morons website.

www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601101&sid=afJXAA1ahZyo


www.reuters.com/article/bondsNews/idUSN1946360420090619


edit: here's another major news source that covered it. ever heard of the new york times? you're still a mong:

dealbook.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/06/26/italy-intercepts-billions-in-fake-treasuries/
(tuqueboy has been in a medically -induced coma since, Fri 28 Aug 2009, 4:49, closed)

I've seen all those
there's been some online chatter, downplay of the whole thing. Can you tell me if these gents have been charged with fraud? Has it been investigated properly? And why did the Italian police spend a week saying they can't tell if they're real or not, suddenly they're "shoddy fakes".

If they are fakes, why wasn't the biggest counterfeiting in history all over the TV news? not just confined to a few websites? What happened to the 2 guys?
(knackerz is skinning up, Fri 28 Aug 2009, 5:24, closed)

you said
there was a complete news blackout. there clearly wasn't.
(tuqueboy has been in a medically -induced coma since, Fri 28 Aug 2009, 5:33, closed)

I wouldn't consider that proper news coverage
have the guys been arrested? No.

If I had a fake 20 bob note, would I get arrested? Yes

Find me the names of the 2 guys and I'll admit I'm defeated
(knackerz is skinning up, Fri 28 Aug 2009, 6:21, closed)

Artist's Impression of the Bonds:

(The Incredible Sulk Finally remembered his password on, Fri 28 Aug 2009, 9:05, closed)

Pffft! ^this!
And double ^^this!
(LongJohnBaldry, Fri 28 Aug 2009, 11:38, closed)

Much better than the original post!

(The Kwyjibo A big, dumb, balding North American ape., Fri 28 Aug 2009, 14:52, closed)

why thankyou
(The Incredible Sulk Finally remembered his password on, Mon 31 Aug 2009, 11:22, closed)

You.
have to admit, it is quite odd how the largest fraud or counterfieting operation the world has ever seen isn't on any major news network in this country. We have 'D' notices - the rest of the world doesn't.
(dchurch bah, Fri 28 Aug 2009, 6:53, closed)

Maybe the police spent a week unsure of their authneticity, because they don't see these every day. I for one would spend about a week before I knew if one of these was real or not. Then, when I discover it is someone's scrawling on the back of a napkin, I would, suddenly declare that they were shoddy fakes!
(The Kwyjibo A big, dumb, balding North American ape., Fri 28 Aug 2009, 14:54, closed)

but it leaves the big questions
why were there no arrests?

why was the story not covered? (that means it's new to 99% of the posters here)

Plus, tugueboy is a journalist, but all he's going by is google searches.
(knackerz is skinning up, Sat 29 Aug 2009, 3:04, closed)

You are The Goat
AICMFP
(LongJohnBaldry, Fri 28 Aug 2009, 11:39, closed)