THE manager of the popular restaurant chain Regal Foods told The VOICE this week that thanks to technology and quick thinking, well trained staff, they avoided becoming victims to counterfeit fraud.
Arver Delaunay, the manager of the Bridge Street branch explained that a small group of males walked into the restaurant on Monday and attempted to fool them with the fake cash.
Delaunay said staff became wary of the group after they began to exhibit strange behaviour. He said: “You could tell they were up to no good. They handed a $50 counterfeit note to one of my cashiers and when they realised that she recognized it was counterfeit, they walked out of the building and left the money behind”.
The manager said the Criminal Investigations Department of the Royal St. Lucia Police Force was called and video footage was shown to them. However, nothing has been done as yet.
Delaunay said; “They’re taking a little time to get to it but I wish they would take this very seriously because, you know, you can’t have that going around. It’s a very serious matter and they need to take it seriously”.
He said he was currently awaiting any kind of response from the police but in the meantime, he was seriously contemplating exposing the culprits by posting the security camera footage to social media websites to shame them and also with hopes of people coming forward to identify them.
Delaunay sent out a warning message to other business owners and establishments to be vigilant and to keep a sharp eye out for persons trying to pass fake bills.
He said: “Be very careful when taking the money that’s coming in to your businesses and let’s try to stop this from getting all over the place”.
With the Christmas season now underway, Delaunay said that this was the peak time for such practices and behaviour. He said it is important to be prepared for these events and said luckily, his staff members are.
“All our cashiers are well trained so they know how to take a look at these things and recognise them when they come in. I think we’re well prepared and everybody else should do the same”.
