Suspect arrested with $100,000 in counterfeit dollars in Najaf

NAJAF — Iraq’s National Security Service said Wednesday it arrested a suspect accused of counterfeiting and circulating fake currency and having links to regional networks involved in the activity.

The agency released footage showing the arrest and what it said were large amounts of counterfeit U.S. currency and property documents seized during the operation.

“After intelligence and field monitoring that lasted for two months and obtaining judicial approvals, National Security Service units in Najaf governorate succeeded in apprehending a suspect involved in counterfeiting and circulating currency and linked to regional gangs active in this field,” the agency said in a statement.

The agency said officers raided the location where the suspect was present and seized $100,000 in counterfeit U.S. currency, as well as counterfeit Iraqi dinar currency. The raid also uncovered “real estate sale and purchase contracts worth 9.5 billion Iraqi dinars,” according to the statement.

The agency said officers found property deeds and documents, checks, powers of attorney, various stamps and other contracts worth about $1.75 million.

Money counting and sorting machines, financial records, residency documents, bank cards and a firearm were also seized, according to the statement. The National Security Service said the suspect and the seized items were referred to the relevant authorities for legal proceedings.

The arrest follows similar cases in recent months. In May, police dismantled a counterfeiting network in Hilla and arrested two suspects accused of attempting to distribute fake Iraqi and U.S. currency, seizing $50,000 in counterfeit dollars and 25 million dinars in fake banknotes.

In April, the Anti-Organized Crime Directorate in Dhi Qar seized more than $50,000 in fake cash. In December 2025, the National Security Service dismantled a forgery network in Basra and arrested three suspects including a foreign national, and separately arrested a man in Kirkuk carrying $10,000 in fake $100 bills who “admitted clearly to bringing them from a neighboring country.”