Police in Geneva are looking into a rather mysterious rash of toilet cloggings.
It turns out at least one bank and a few surrounding businesses in the Swiss city have seen plumbing gummed up with €500 notes, requiring costly repairs, the BBC reported Monday.
As of May 2016, the €500 denomination is no longer being printed as European Union officials hope to combat drug smuggling and terrorism financing. Existing banknotes remain legal tender.
A non-EU member, Switzerland maintains its own 167-year-old currency, the Swiss franc, although many large businesses accept euros in everyday transactions.
While discarding legal tender isn’t illegal in itself, police are looking to see if the money itself is connected to a criminal enterprise.
“We’re trying to find out where the notes came from and whether a crime has been committed,” said Vincent Derouand, an official with the Geneva prosecutor’s office, the BBC reported.
• Ken Shepherd can be reached at kshepherd@washingtontimes.com.
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