US Bank Notes Worth $3 Trillion Found In Argao Cebu

US banknotes amounting to $3 trillion that were recovered in barangay Talaga, Argao town two months ago. According to the Philippines Star, the US Secret Service confirmed them to be counterfeits.

Here's a little history from that same article:

In October, a resident in Talaga, Argao recovered a chest left behind a banana grove by a Caucasian-looking man.

The chest, which is 27.3 inches long, 10 inches wide and 14.4 inches in height, has the markings of Federal Reserve Bank in Cleveland, Ohio. On top of the markings was an engraved seal of the United States.

The opened compartments contained seven film clichés, 12 bank certificates, 12 redemption act certificates, 12 treasury certificates, 12 inventory lists, 12 gold reserve act certificates, 11 insurance certificates and 12 gold bullion certificates.

The fourth compartment contained 200 pieces of US federal bond interest coupons, with each coupon stating it was worth $1 billion.

And here's an update from Sunstar News:

The US Embassy also requested PRO 7 to burn the notes, or to send these to the US consular agent’s office in Cebu for destruction.

“On behalf of all US federal agencies involved, we thank you for your professionalism and timely response in handling this sensitive matter. I look forward to personally meeting you and your staff in the near future,” the letter said.

The Cebu Provincial Police Office (CPPO), particularly operatives of the Argao Police Station, recovered the bonds last Oct. 12, after a Caucasian man abandoned the trunk in a banana grove in Sitio Prenza, Barangay Talaga, Argao.

Samples of the bank notes were sent to the US Embassy for analysis, although the police and US Honorary Consul John Domingo earlier pointed to signs the recovered documents were bogus.

Efforts to identify and locate the person who dropped the trunk in Argao town are also ongoing. Police have yet to find out what he intended to do with the bonds or how he produced them.

The recovery of the counterfeit bonds earned the provincial police office an award from the Department of Interior and Local Government last month.

(image from ABS-CBN News)