THREE men have been arrested in Palma de Mallorca accused of a banknote forgery operation to the tune of 700,000 euros.

Guardia Civil officers have been investigating the case for some months since they detected the presence of an organised criminal gang on the island.

They were alerted by numerous reports from businesses in Mallorca who had been defrauded with fake banknotes.

The gang’s modus operandi was to convince traders that they wanted to invest a large sum of money brought from Africa to Spain in their businesses, in order to launder it.

Police reported this week that they had arrested Emmanuel E.E., 40, a Cameroon citizen, at Palma airport when he was due to board a plane destined for Valencia.

He was found to have around 5,400 euros in cash on his person.

Later that day, two Mali-born men of 23 and 24 were detained in Palma.

Fake notes were seized together with eight safe deposit boxes and three briefcases containing dyed paper.