Police seize $6 trillion of fake T-bonds

POTENZA, Italy — Italian police said on Friday they had seized about $6 trillion of fake U.S. Treasury bonds in Switzerland, and issued arrest warrants for eight people accused of international fraud and other financial crimes.

The operation, co-ordinated by prosecutors from the southern Italian city of Potenza, was carried out by Italian and Swiss authorities after a year-long investigation, an Italian police source said.

The fake securities, more than a third of U.S. national debt, were seized in January from a Swiss trust company where they were held in three large trunks.

Read the rest here.

Easy tip off for those in the know. The United States more or less banned the issue of "bearer bonds" back in the early 1980's. There may be a handful still out there that predate the ban, but most would have long since matured or been "called." One can still occasionally buy beaer instruments overseas, but not of US stocks or bonds.