By Andrew McIntosh
A Quebec man has been sentenced to nine months in prison for orchestrating one of Canada’s largest counterfeit schemes involving fake $2 coins, commonly known as toonies. Jean-Francois Généreux, 50, was convicted after attempting to smuggle over 26,000 counterfeit coins from China. This sentence follows a history of previous convictions related to counterfeiting and fraud.
Généreux’s operation, which ran from 2022 to 2023, was uncovered when a Canada Border Services Agency officer intercepted shipments labeled as “metal badges.” These shipments were part of Généreux’s plan to profit from the counterfeit coins, which he purchased for just five cents each.
Judge Marc-Nicolas Foucault ordered the confiscation and destruction of the fake coins, highlighting the severity of Généreux’s actions. Critics, including counterfeit experts, have called the sentence too lenient given the potential harm to Canada’s monetary system.
Généreux’s case is part of a broader investigation into counterfeit coins that have flooded cities across Canada, with another individual, Daixiong He, recently charged in a similar scheme involving 10,000 fake toonies.
Authorities continue to grapple with the implications of these counterfeit operations, as merchants and banks face losses from unwittingly accepting the fake coins.